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Community.....A3 Lifestyles........A4 Opinion............A6 Weather..........A8 Sports..............B1 Courts..............B3 Index...............## INDEX Have a great day, Rick Vasquez! GOOD MORNING D DowJonesIndustrial 19,918.88 (-23.08) D Standard & Poor's 2260.96 (-4.22) D Nasdaq 5447.42 (-24.01) BUSINESS Last rebel fighters and civil- ians reportedly evacuate war- torn city as part of interna- tional agreement. PAGE B4 CIVIL WAR Syrianmilitaryclaims full control of Aleppo Check out what's going on in your neighborhood and the community. PAGE A2 LOCAL CALENDAR Staff report @redbluffnewsonTwitter RED BLUFF A 25-year-old Red Bluff man was arrested Thursday on Larie Lane in connection with reports of a sexual assault of a 23-year-old Corning woman. Following a lengthy investigation, Trevor D. Grooms was contacted Thursday morning and booked into Tehama County Jail on the felony charges of rape by force or fear, false impris- onment, penetration with foreign object, kid- napping with intent to commit sexual assault, oral copulation, assault to commit rape, domes- tic violence and child endangerment, according to a press release issued Thursday afternoon by Red Bluff Police Department. The victim contacted Red Bluff police Wednesday and reported being forcibly raped by Grooms, the release said. She told police that Grooms, who was in pos- session of a firearm, made her get into his ve- hicle and due to fear for her life she did not resist. Grooms reportedly drove the woman around for some time prior to taking her back to his house, where the alleged rape and assault took place, the release said. The case is still under investigation. Grooms is being held on $915,000 bail. RED BLUFF Localman arrestedin connection withrape The Associated Press BURNEY An attacker sprayed an attendant at a California gas station with a flammable liq- uid and set him on fire, killing the man and launching an ongoing manhunt, authorities said Thursday. A $10,000 reward has been posted for help finding the assailant seen on security video Wednesday evening entering the business near Burney, a quiet logging community at the north- ern end of the state. Friends and co-workers of 54-year-old vic- tim David Wicks gathered Thursday at the gas station and described him as someone who al- ways had a smile on his face and never had a bad thing to say. "I can't imagine somebody, knowing Dave, why would anybody do this?" tearful co-worker Kris Cantrell told The Record Searchlight news- paper. Surveillance video shows the attacker wear- ing yellow rain gear, black hoodie and gloves, said Shasta County sheriff's Lt. Anthony Ber- tain. Investigators found a bicycle outside the gas station, he said. Arriving paramedics found Wicks with se- vere burns at the Rocky Ledge Shell Station. An air ambulance flew him to a hospital, where he died. Secret Witness of Shasta County, a nonprofit organization, posted the reward seeking tips that lead to an arrest and conviction. Devinder Sahota, a co-owner of the gas sta- tion, said Wicks' wife, Sonia, managed the busi- ness. "We've never been in a situation like this be- fore," Sahota told the newspaper. "Our primary goal is to console Sonia." BURNEY Re wa rd o ff er ed a er store clerk wa s se t on fi re By Heather Hoelscher hhoelscher@redbluffdailynews. com @DN_Heather on Twitter RED BLUFF The Red Bluff City Council Tuesday au- thorized the Police Depart- ment to receive $140,000 from Tehama Interagency Drug Enforcement asset for- feiture funds to implement an automated license plate reader program for a three- year span, designed to assist with detecting vehicle thefts and other crimes in the area. This technology can be beneficial in tracking, locat- ing and ultimately recover- ing stolen vehicles within the city and in Corning said Police Chief Kyle Sanders, who introduced the agenda item to the council. Sanders expressed enthu- siasm for the program in hopes the new system, which has proven to work in other cities, will decrease the num- ber of vehicles stolen, among other criminal activity. This month alone there have been 12 vehicle thefts, and 114 vehicle thefts in 2016, Sanders said. The en- tire state has experienced an increase in vehicle thefts over the last five years. There will be three fixed site locations — one in Red Bluff, one in Corning and three mobile units — for the three agencies involved, including the Red Bluff Po- lice Department, the Corn- ing Police Department and the Tehama County District Attorney Bureau of Investi- gations. The department can part- ner with surrounding cit- ies and bigger cities, such as Sacramento, to have the ability to share data, lo- cate more stolen vehicles and catch the criminals in- volved. The department will uti- lize Lehr Auto Electric as the sole source vendor for the Vigilant Solutions Auto- mated License Plate Reader POLICE City approves license plate reader program By Julie Zeeb jzeeb@redbluffdailynews.com @DN_Zeeb on Twitter RED BLUFF The Salva- tion Army distributed toys and food to the needy for Christmas on Tuesday and Wednesday at the or- ganization's Walnut Street facility, where there also was a special guest. Santa Claus, known to some as Red Bluff Fire Capt. John Campbell, made a stop to visit with children, hand out candy canes and listen to their lists while parents waited in line for food baskets. It's something he enjoys doing and has done for the last six years, Camp- bell said. Over the two-day pe- riod, the organization helped 354 households with about 1,151 people served, said Salvation Army bookkeeper and of- fice administrator Teddy White. Of those, there were 800 children who were amongst those as- sisted. "We'd like to say thank you to all of the commu- nity," said Salvation Army Major Kit Wetter. "We wouldn't be able to help the volume of people we SALVATION ARMY CHRISTMAS FOOD, TOYS DISTRIBUTED TO NEEDY Santa visits with a Nadia Ibarra, 8, of Red Bluff, on Wednesday at the Red Bluff Salvation Army food basket and toy giveaway. PHOTOS BY JULIE ZEEB — DAILY NEWS Santa, also known as Red Bluff Fire Capt. John Campbell, visits with a girl Wednesday at the Red Bluff Salvation Army food basket and toy giveaway. CHRISTMAS PAGE 7 PROGRAM PAGE 7 Trump reacts sharply to news that Russia might strengthen its nuclear arsenal, leading to fears of arms race. PAGE B4 FOREIGN POLICY Trump: US must increase nuke capability » redbluffdailynews.com Friday, December 23, 2016 50CENTS AN EDITION OF THE CHICO ENTERPRISE-RECORD Riverfront Playhouse Redding theater group purchases downtown venue Community A3 Donations Students give to homeless, foster families Lifestyles A4 FollowtheDailyNews on Twitter to keep pace with breaking news and events @REDBLUFFNEWS FOLLOWUS ONTWITTER Volume132,issue24 7 58551 69001 9 ShowerS High: Low: 50 35 PAGE A8 Web bonus More news and opinion. redbluffdailynews.com