A man was taken into custody after allegedly attempting to cash a fraudulent check at a bank in Mira Mesa on Thursday and then trying to carjack a motorcycle and a car.

Moises Garcia-Perez, 22, tried to cash the check at the Bank of America on the 9200 block of Mira Mesa Blvd around 2:42 p.m., according to the San Diego Police Department (SDPD). When he was unsuccessful, he left but forgot his real I.D. at the bank.

Garcia-Perez returned later to get his I.D. and the bank called police. When officers arrived at the scene, he took off.

SDPD says he ran across Mira Mesa Boulevard and attempted to carjack a motorcycle from someone who was stopped at an intersection. Garcia-Perez pushed the victim down and was attempting to lift up the motorcycle when police say he saw officers chasing him and ran.

He then jumped a fence and tried to carjack another person. The second victim was inside the car while it was running and Garcia-Perez attempted to get into the passenger seat.

When he was unsuccessful again, he ran southbound on Black Mountain Road and got onto a bus.

SDPD says a good Samaritan called them and informed them of his whereabouts.

Garcia-Perez was arrested when he got off the bus at a transit center.

Temecula Valley High alum and future Cal State Fullerton softball player Kelsie Whitmore inked a contract to play with the Sonoma Stompers Professional Baseball Club Thursday. 

The Stompers have been actively searching for the best female baseball players in the United States to join the team and help with the recruitment, development and advancement of women in baseball.

Whitmore, an incoming college freshman with the Titans, and her new Stompers teammate Stacy Piagno will also serve as members of  Team USA in the Women’s Baseball World Cup which takes place this September in South Korea.

Cal State Fullerton softball head coach Kelly Ford gave Whitmore her full support and told the school’s athletics website, "I am so excited about this opportunity for Kelsie. She has a great baseball mind and that will be an asset to our program. Her skills are great and her mental game is even better.”

Whitmore also helped the USA Women’s National Baseball Team to a silver medal at the 2014 WBSC Women’s World Cup in Japan.

A blind mother coyote rescued earlier this year after she was found shot in the head was euthanized Wednesday in Southern California.

Officials decided to euthanize Angel after a veterinarian determined she was suffering too much, said Andrew Hughan, a California Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesman. 

Rescuers pulled the coyote from an empty reservoir in February. She had been shot between the eyes and was also pregnant at the time. 

After a monthlong regimen of care, including intravenous fluids and vitamins, the coyote gave birth at an animal hospital to a litter of five healthy puppies. But she never recovered her sight. 

"She nursed her pups up to where they were healthy enough to live without her,"Hughan said. "But her health — I mean, she had a bullet through the brain and she couldn't see. Her life was not anything acceptable." 

Julia Di Sieno, of the Animal Rescue Team in Solvang, found the coyote in the reservoir after a call came into her hotline Feb. 11. The coyote, whom she named Angel, was bleeding and having trouble breathing.

Di Sieno climbed down 30 feet into the stone-and-mortar reservoir and loaded the wounded animal onto a gurney.

Examinations revealed Angel had been shot between the eyes, and the bullet blinded her. The coyote then likely wandered the Santa Ynez Valley north of Santa Barbara for days or weeks until she tumbled into the reservoir, Di Sieno said.

"What this animal endured is beyond comprehension," Di Sieno told the Los Angeles Times earlier this year. "When she had puppies, I didn't know whether to cry in sadness or for joy."

After persuading the state Department of Fish and Wildlife not to euthanize Angel, Di Sieno had hoped to keep her as a surrogate mother for young coyotes rescued by her nonprofit. In California, possession of a coyote is illegal unless permitted by the state.

But on Wednesday morning, she surrendered Angel to Fish and Wildlife for the coyote's health to be evaluated. 

"It was the right thing to do. She's out of her misery," Hughan said.

Donald Trump's presidential campaign isn't the only thing being shaken up. His leading fan site on the online message board Reddit has been plagued by constant infighting among moderators, NBC News reported.

The subreddit r/the_donald, a user-created section of Reddit with no connection to Trump's actual campaign, became a grassroots sensation during the Republican primaries with more than 50 million monthly page views at its peak in March.

The subreddit, managed by a handful of mostly anonymous fans, is a breakout success. Along with the infighting, the board has suffered from infiltration by white supremacists and clashes with the site's administrators over complaints that its users game the system to make their content more visible.

Last week, its leaders announced they were kicking out moderator CisWhiteMaelstrom, widely credited with popularizing the subreddit, over allegations he planned to join forces with prominent white nationalists like Jared Taylor and Richard Spencer to coordinate support for Trump.

Police have arrested a wanted felon accused of leading officers on a high-speed pursuit across multiple San Diego highways during rush hour, months after the suspect ditched his car Downtown and fled. 

Ahran Haugley, 41, was found on Thursday when officers responded to a sleeper in a vehicle on the 11200 block of Paseo Montanoso, San Diego Police Department (SDPD) Lt. Scott Wahl said. It is unclear if officers knew Haulgey was the person in the car at first. 

When officers arrived and found the man asleep in the car with a meth pipe on his lap, they knocked on the window. The man became combative and, after a brief, struggle, officers took Haugley into custody. The officers reported no injuries. 

He faces several charges, including burglary, resisting arrest and unlawful taking or driving of a vehicle. 

On April 28, Haugley allegedly led police on a pursuit across multiple freeways. The pursuit began near Caminito East Bluff and Via Sonoma in San Diego's North County when officers were conducting a "check the welfare" call, San Diego Police (SDPD) officers said.

Haugley refused to pull over and began weaving in and out of traffic during the evening commute.

He led the pursuit from La Jolla up to several North County freeways, and then back down to Downtown. At one point, he stopped to change his clothes in Del Mar before continuing the wild ride.

NBC 7 San Diego followed the pursuit live as it unfolded.

Haugley eventually drove into Downtown San Diego, pulled into a parking structure and took off on foot. Police found his car but never found him. 

A Caribbean-bound cruise ship that departed New Jersey on Thursday returned to shore after a boy nearly drowned in one of the boat’s pools, officials said.

The 8-year-old boy from Maryland had "an accident" in one of the ship’s pools, Royal Caribbean Cruises tweeted at about 10 p.m.

Law enforcement officials said the Anthem of the Seas cruise ship departed from Bayonne at 4:30 p.m. and was returning at 9:30 p.m. because of the medical emergency. 

The Coast Guard retrieved the child from the ship by Medivac helicopter and he was taken to Staten Island University Hospital. His family was expected to meet him there. The ship was docked in Bayonne early Friday morning. 

The boy was in critical condition Friday, The Associated Press reported, citing the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard said the boy had been in the water for eight to 10 minutes before cruise officials found him. Police described the boy as the victim of a drowning or near-drowning. 

Royal Caribbean said on Twitter the boy was being treated at the hospital and the cruise line’s care team was providing support to his family.

This isn’t the first time Anthem of the Seas made headlines this year: It sailed into a storm in the Atlantic Ocean in February, tossing passengers and furniture around the vessel. Passengers described it as "a cruise from hell."

The House will move next week on an anti-terrorism package that will have a provision to stop suspected terrorists from buying guns, a source who participated in a House GOP conference call on Thursday morning told NBC News.

The specifics of the legislation are unclear, but the package will likely include measures to help prevent radicalization and recruitment of potential terrorists and a provision to prevent suspected terrorists from buying guns.

The full House also will take up Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Tim Murphy's bill seeking to prevent gun violence by providing improved care for mental illness, the source said.

Republican leadership is looking to move pre-emptively to block House Democrats from holding another floor protest. Last week, civil rights icon and Georgia Rep. John Lewis led House Democrats in a 26-hour sit-in over gun policy reform in the Capitol.  

Police are searching for a man who forced his way into a shower at 24 Hour Fitness and attempted to sexually assault a victim. 

The incident happened at a 24 Hour Fitness at approximately 12:15 a.m. on Sunday, June 19, when a male suspect forcibly opened a woman's glass shower door at the gym, San Diego Police (SDPD) said. The gym is near Greenwood Memorial Park in San Diego's Mountain View neighborhood, just west of Interstate 805 and south of State Route 94. 

The woman tried to hold the door shut, but the suspect managed to step into the shower stall. He motioned for the victim to be quiet, police said. 

The man grabbed the victim's shoulder and stopped her from escaping, police said. 

However, the victim screamed and pushed the suspect away. The man fled before police arrived. 

The suspect is described as a thin, clean-shaven man in his mid 20s, approximately 5 feet 8 inches to 5 feet 9 inches. He weighs between 140 and 150 pounds and had wavy black hair, police said. At the time of the assault, he was wearing black shorts, black flip flops and did not have a shirt on. 

Anyone with information on the identity or location of the suspect is asked to call SDPD’s Southeastern Division at (619) 527-3500 or the Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477.

No other information was immediately available.

A mother and her 9-year old son were killed in a crash in Escondido on Friday, according to police.

The crash happened around 4:43 p.m. on the 400 block of East Washington Street near San Pasqual Valley Road just east of Interstate 15.

According to the Escondido Police Department, the 39-year old mother was driving in a Toyota Yaris and was struck by a Chrysler 300 as she was about to make a left turn onto East Washington Street. The Chrysler then struck a Toyoto Camry.

Both cars crashed with such force, they spun off of each other and into the middle of the street.

Police say the impact was enough to fold the Toyota Yaris in half.

Neighbors and friends of the boy told NBC 7, they are heartbroken.

"It's hard because you know you are not going to see them again and you know they're not going to be here, you're not going to talk to them anymore," said neighbor Brandy Caracheo.

A friend of the boy's said she had just spent the afternoon with him at the Boy's and Girl's Club Camp just before the crash.

"He was really getting comfortable and used to us then to see this happened," Martha Robledo said.

The two people in the Chrysler complained of pain and no one inside the Toyota Camry was injured.

The mother and the boy were not conscious when they were taken to Palomar Medical Center where the both later died.

Police say the crash in being investigated and anyone with information is asked to contact them.

Check back for updates on this developing news story. 

Every year, Americans honor the country's independence on the Fourth of July by celebrating freedom with fireworks, barbecues and beach getaways. 

July Fourth has only been a federal holiday since 1941, but Americans have celebrated Independence Day since the 18th century. During the summer of 1776 some colonists held parades and fired canons to accompany reading of the newly signed Declaration of Independence.

The following year Philadelphia hosted the first annual independence celebration on July 4. 

Here's what to know about the national holiday on the 240th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.

$6.8 billion: The amount of money predicted to be spent celebrating the July 4 holiday this year, according to the National Retail Federation.

$71.34: The average amount of money Americans are expected to spend on food per household, according to the National Retail Federation.

15,000: The numbers of fireworks displays held to celebrate July 4 each year, according to Wallethub.

40: The number of years Macy's has been putting on their fireworks display in New York City. It's the biggest display in the country. This year, the viewers will see fireworks from nine countries and they will change colors 17 times.

$311.7 million: The value of fireworks imported from China in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

150 million: The approximate number of hot dogs consumed each July 4, according to Wallethub.

69: The record number of hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes at the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest on Coney Island. Joey Chestnut set that world record in 2013. 

64: The percentage of Americans who will attend a July 4 barbecue or picnic, according to Wallethub.

$3.1 million: The value of U.S. flags exported in 2015, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

43 million: The estimated number of Americans who will be traveling this holiday weekend, according to AAA. Most will be driving. 

$2.29: The average price for a gallon of regular gas this weekend, according to AAA. 

Kenny Chesney, 5 Seconds of Summer, Meghan Trainor, the Radio City Rockettes, Pitbull and DNCE are set to peform at this year's "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular" Monday on NBC. 

"Today" co-hosts Willie Geist and Tamron Hall will return to host the two-hour Monday broadcast featuring fireworks lighting up sky over New York City.

The 2016 display, which will include more than 56,000 pyrotechnic effects, will be fired from five locations on the East River in midtown and within the Seaport district. This year, the 25-minute display will introduce pyro-writing, which uses fireworks to spell out gUSA in the sky.

Amy Kule, the executive producer of the event, said in a press release that this is their biggest show since the millennial display in 2000, which included more than 60,000 firework shells launched from 13 barges surrounding New York City. The is the 40th year of the annual event. 

The fireworks celebration will be choreographed to an arrangement of patriotic musical selections, including "This Land is Your Land," "The Star-Spangled Banner," "God Bless America," among others. The show will culminate with a rendition of "America the Beautiful" performed by Jennifer Holliday and the United States Air Force Band. A bell will also chime 13 times during the display to pay homage to the original 13 colonies.

A pilot who flew for the famed Eagle Squadron in England and for the U.S. during World War II was honored at the San Diego Air & Space Museum on Thursday.

Longtime Rancho Bernardo resident Steve “Spiro” Pisanos, died at age 96 on June 6.

According to an article by the San Diego Union Tribune, Pisanos was a native of Athens, Greece and came to the U.S. at age 18 as an unauthorized immigrant. At the time, he didn’t speak a word of English but his dream was to become a pilot.

Pisnos served for 30 years in the air force, starting off as a pilot for the Eagle Squadrons of Great Britain’s Royal Air Force and then transferring to the Army Air Force when the U.S. joined World War II.

Jim Kidrick, President CEO of the San Diego Air & Space Museum told NBC 7, Pisanos was willing to put his life on the line and he epitomized what it meant to be an American.

“We’re celebrating a true American hero,” Kidrick said on Thursday. “He embraced America like no other person I’ve met in my lifetime.”

Pisanos was inducted into the International Air Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum in 2006.

“If he would’ve just stand up in front of us today for 10 or 15 minutes, we would all walk away feeling a little bit better about ourselves and a lot better about America,” Kidrick said.

Neighbors told NBC 7 they were horrified, mad and frustrated by a two-minute delay in getting through to 911 medics on Saturday after a refrigerator fell on a 6-year-old South Bay boy, killing him.

San Diego Fire Department spokesman Lee Swanson confirmed a caller waited 2 minutes and 34 seconds before getting through to the San Diego Fire Emergency Dispatch Center. Swanson confirmed the call was answered in 17 seconds by San Diego Police Department dispatch, but was then delayed during the transfer for emergency medical response.

The boy became trapped underneath a refrigerator as adults were trying to move it around 12:30 p.m. Saturday in the 700-block of Beyer Way in south San Diego’s Otay Mesa West community.

Many witnesses told NBC 7 the extent of the boy’s injuries were so extreme that nothing could have saved his life, not even a quicker response. However, some neighbors were very upset because they had trouble getting through to 911 during the emergency.

“It probably wouldn’t have (helped), but if they would have gotten there, he might have still had a chance. A little bit of a chance, but we’ll never know now,” said Antwon Berry, a neighbor who said he also called 911 but never got through to a dispatcher. “It took too long. I just kept looking at the family, helpless. It was just too long.”

First responders were on the scene within 3 minutes and 54 seconds upon receiving the call, according to Swanson.

NBC 7 uncovered San Diego’s pressing issue with delayed 911 calls in May, as the first news agency to report that a Mira Mesa family gave up on 911 to drive their fatally wounded infant to a hospital after two 911 calls went unanswered.

Those calls had wait times triple the national standard for emergency call holds. NBC 7 was also first to reveal wait times in San Diego Police Department’s dispatch center exceeding 10 minutes, staffing shortages, and other issues with the system.

In response, Mayor Kevin Faulconer said the situation was “unacceptable” and allocated funds to help retain dispatchers. The San Diego Police Department also changed leadership of the Dispatch Center, and announced a hiring campaign.

The latest issue in Otay Mesa West was not with the San Diego Police Department dispatch center, but rather in San Diego Fire Emergency Dispatch Center, which has also experienced attrition issues and higher call volumes. Fire dispatchers will not be receiving the same 26.6 percent pay raise over three years to avert staffing issues as police dispatchers have been promised. The raise for police dispatchers was prompted by a staffing crisis and public outrage over long wait times on 911.

At the 6-year-old boy’s home Thursday, a memorial marked the spot where the refrigerator fell on him. His parents were not home, and a relative said they had gone to collect their son’s ashes.

Fire Department Spokesman Swanson said the entire department extends their sincere condolences to the family. A source told NBC 7 emergency responders and dispatchers involved in responding to the fatal accident Saturday were completely devastated by the family’s loss.

“Call takers at the Fire Dispatch Center pick up calls for service within 10 seconds 86 to 88 percent of the time,” Swanson said. “Unfortunately, a high call volume at the time of this call led to a delay.”

San Diego Fire Department has added eight dispatch positions into this year’s budget.

“Those won’t change this unfortunate circumstance, but they will help ensure people can reach us at their times of need,” Swanson said.

Emergency personnel say a key issue to addressing the 911 delay problem is educating the public. In one month alone, local 911 operators were bogged down with more than 11,000 pocket dials to 911. Even though Saturday’s 911 call wait did not happen in the San Diego Police Department’s dispatch center, SDPD would like to remind the public how to help emergency responders by not hanging up on 911 calls.

San Diego Police Lt. Scott Wahl said hang-up calls compound 911 wait times, and accidental calls make up nearly a third of the total call volume.

“Every police officer, firefighter, paramedic, lifeguard, we all want to get to emergency situations as quickly as we possibly can,” Wahl said. “When you call 911, the best thing you can do is stay on the line and resist the natural tendency that we all have – to hang up when you don’t get through right away.”

At NBC 7’s request, San Diego Police Department also provided a guide for best 911 practices in Spanish for viewers in our Spanish-speaking community.

San Diego Police Department Lt. Manuel Del Toro explained in Spanish why people should not hang up on 911, even if they have already reported the incident to dispatchers.

“Es muy importante que la gente entiende cuando llaman 911, tienen que tener un poco de paciencia,” Del Toro dijo. “Lo que pasa con la policía cuando llaman 911, es ellos reciben la información e inmediatamente van a mandar ayuda a la personas que están llamando. En ese momento, las personas por teléfono le van a hacer muchas preguntas. Mucha gente cuelga en ese momento pero es muy importante que mantengan en la línea y le contesten las preguntas.”

Dijo: “Lo que pasa cuando la gente cuelga es que los oficiales no tienen todo la informacion que es necesario. A veces una emergencia son médicos. Entonces, es muy importante mandarle todas los ayudas que necesitan. Por ejemplo, en unas situaciones tienen que mandar policías y en otros ejemplos que mandar los médicos y a veces tienen que mandar los dos para ayudar a la gente en la manera que ellos están pidiendo. Si les cuelgan, es posible que la ayuda que necesitan no les va a llegar tan pronto porque no tenemos todo la información.”

NBC 7’s Wendy Fry provided a basic translation of Del Toro’s comments.

(Basic translation: “It’s very important that people understand that when one calls 911, to have some patience,” Del Toro said. “What happens with the police when people call 911, is they receive the information and immediately, they are going to send help to the person that is calling. In this moment, the people on the telephone (the dispatchers) are going to ask a lot of questions. A lot of people hang up in this moment but it is very important to stay on the line and answer the questions.”

“What happens when people hang up is the officials don’t have all the information about the emergency that is necessary. Sometimes an emergency is medical. So, it is very important for us to send all the help that is needed. For example, some situations require we send police, and other examples require we send medics and sometimes we need to send both to help the people in the way they are asking. If they hang up, it is possible that the help they need will not arrive promptly because we don’t have all the information,” Del Toro said.)

Six years after it was first unveiled, a plan to restore the heart of Balboa Park is getting a new lease on life.

The Plaza de Panama project took a long detour through the courts.

Where the story had left off -- before a “born-again” chapter began to unfold on Thursday -- was in September, 2015, when an appellate ruling in favor of the project was left standing by the California Supreme Court.

There was no immediate impetus to reboot it, but now it's become a civic priority again.

The idea was to take traffic out of the center of the park on a bypass bridge leading to an 800-space, paid-parking structure, topped by parkland.

While environmentalists and historic preservationists fought it through city hall and filed legal challenges, dozens of public parking spaces that drivers jockeyed for were removed -- which opened up more of the plaza to pedestrians and cyclists.

The pay-as-you go parkade is a concept that tourists, for the most part, generally accepted when surveyed by NBC 7 over the years.

But locals put up a ruckus, and the idea worried many of the park's museums and tenant organizations that attendance and participation would drop off.

“This is a controversial project; it’s always been a controversial project,” says Lisa Halverstadt, who write extensively on Balboa Park issues for Voice of San Diego. “It’s going to have to go back to the City Council for the financing aspect.”

The plan carried an original pricetag of $45 million -- to be met by donations from Qualcomm billionaire Irwin Jacobs and other philanthropists.

He, they and city leaders are now on board with getting things back together again, along with an alliance of park “stakeholders”.

It's not clear to what extent years of inflation might have increased costs.

“So really, folks are going back to the drawing board on the financing side looking to see what it's going to cost, and they're going to have to raise some money,” Halverstadt said in an interview Thursday.

“The city is going to be putting some dollars in, of course … they're still going to have the paid parking to help bankroll this project."

Although critics claim a bond issue to underwrite the parking structure would require a public vote, attorneys for the project’s backers argue otherwise – noting that no city general funds would be involved.

The Milwaukee woman added to the FBI's "10 Most Wanted Fugitives" list for the killing of a pregnant woman was captured early Friday, authorities said.

Shanika Minor, 24, was taken into custody in Fayetteville, North Carolina, the FBI's Milwaukee bureau tweeted.

Minor is wanted in the March shooting death of 23-year-old Tamecca Perry. Perry's unborn child also died in the shooting.

According to NBC affiliate WTMB, Perry also had two children. 

Authorities say Minor shot Perry, who was within a week of giving birth, after a confrontation over loud music at the duplex where Minor's mother also lived.

Minor fled after the shooting and has not been found. She is described as African-American, 5-foot-6 inches tall, weighing 165 pounds, of medium build with black hair and brown eyes. She has a display of roses tattooed on her lower abdomen.

Officials said Minor might be receiving help from friends or extended family members in Missouri, Mississippi, Texas, Tennessee, Ohio and Georgia, NBC News reported. 

A reward of up to $100,000 is being offered.

NBC 7 has learned the identities of the three women who were found dead inside a home in Rancho Santa Fe earlier this week.

Sayeh Amini, 48, was identified by her family’s attorney on Thursday. Amini was the sister of homeowner Michael Arya, who had lived there prior to his death from cancer in April.

“It’s just a horrible situation," said attorney Carl Starrett.

Deputies responded to reports of a possible child abuse inside a home on 17100 block of Villa De La Valle on Monday morning. When they arrived, they found the bodies of two women and a female teenager.

The San Diego Sheriff's Deparent isn't confirming Amini's identity.

But a Mercedes registered to her sat in the driveway during the homicide investigation in front of the home.

"Her brother appointed her to be manager of affairs after he passed," explained Starrett. 

Starret had known Amini for at least 10 years and her husband longer. He says the responsibility of handling her deceased brother's estate became overwhelming.

“She seems to have had some mental health challenges she wasn't able to overcome. Twice in a week prior to the tragedy, her husband sought help for his wife and when she was suicidal.”

Family and friends have confirmed Amini's niece, 15-year-old Hannah Arya was one of the deceased.

The teen is described as a smart young lady who had been in town from Oregon, visiting friends and her father’s home.

The other woman found dead was Mia Shin, a close friend of the Arya family.

Shin's brother told NBC 7, she was a real estate broker in Los Angeles but was in town working on some deals.

Investigators haven't released a cause of death or motive at this time.

But they saying they're not searching for a suspect and believe this incident to be a murder-suicide.

Investigators say they plan to release new information Friday morning.

Fifteen San Diego County companies will participate in the local World Trade Center’s Metro Connect program, a comprehensive support program to spur the companies’ global growth.

Each will receive a $10,000 award to help their international business.

The winning companies are Aurora Spine, Avacen Medical, Calbiotech, Deering Banjo Co. and ElliptiGO Inc.

Other winners are GroundMetrics, Hyperikon, Inova Drone, Manta Instruments Inc. and Ocean Aero.

Also included are Ocean Reef, Rough Draft Brewing Co., Solatube Worldwide Sales, VaultRMS and Whova.

Companies may compete for an additional $35,000 at a pitch event scheduled for November.

JPMorgan Chase provided the awards.

Winners were announced June 30. In all, 73 companies applied to the program. Judges evaluated the companies under several criteria, including strong potential for growth from increased international exports or foreign investment.

The MetroConnect program has already created success stories.

In 2015, grand prize winner Cypher Genomics was acquired by San Diego-based Human Longevity Inc. after using the money to fund a partnership with Genomics England. Another 2015 participant, pharmaceutical company IriSys, opened a business development office in Shanghai.

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Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin are attending the 2016 Western Conservative Summit in Denver, Colorado, on Friday. 

With a set of keys in hand, a woman fought off an attacker in City Heights early Friday after the unknown man allegedly tried to grab her.

According to the San Diego Police Department (SDPD), the attempted kidnapping happened around 2:45 a.m. as the victim was walking in the 4400 block of El Cajon Boulevard.

The 26-year-old woman told police she noticed a man in a truck driving past her several times. Moments later, the truck stopped and the man got out. That man then allegedly approached the woman from behind and tried to grab her in an attempt to pull her into his vehicle.

The woman, with her keys in her hand, fought back and punched the stranger in the face.

The suspect ran away and the woman ran into the middle of the street and screamed for help. A Good Samaritan passing by stopped and picked up the woman and she was able to safely call authorities.

The SDPD said the victim’s shirt was torn in the struggle. She suffered minor scratches but was otherwise unharmed.

The suspect involved in the attempted assault and kidnapping has not yet been arrested. Police described him as a man in his 30s wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt. He was driving an older four-door burgundy Toyota Tundra with a camper shell.

A vacant meat market in Escondido consumed by raging flames Thursday is now the site of a criminal investigation.

On Friday, one day after the blaze ripped through the vacant Talone’s Meat Market in the 500 block of North Hale Avenue, firefighters remained posted around the perimeter of the burnt building, hosing down hot spots and surveying the heavy damage.

The fire sparked Thursday just before 9 a.m., sending plumes of thick smoke into the air visible for hours along freeways in San Diego’s North County, including nearby Interstate 15.

At its peak, about 100 firefighters battled the flames of the four-alarm fire, which shot through the roof of the abandoned building, causing parts of the roof to collapse. Parts of the old, dilapidated building crumbled under the intense heat as crews defensively fought the fire from the outside.

Due to the severe damage to the structure, fire officials were not able to safely enter the building, the Escondido Fire Department (EFD) said. Crews worked through the night making sure the blaze did not reignite.

On Friday, investigators were still waiting to get clearance to enter the approximately 10,000-square-foot building. Though the investigation was underway, officials did not reveal why the site of the fire is now a crime scene. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Talone’s Meat Market has long been abandoned. According to residents, police and fire officials, the building is known to be frequented by transients.

The Escondido Police Department (EPD) confirmed that, since April, there have been extra patrols around the abandoned building. Days before the blaze, police received a report of someone trespassing at the building but when officers arrived at the property, they did not find any trespassers. The EPD said the property management company that owns the building had asked police for help managing the homeless problem at the building. The property management company said it planned to demolish the meat market in the next few months.

When the fire broke out Thursday, the EFD received reports that there may have been transients inside the building.

However, since crews were unable to enter the fire-torn building due to concerns over the safety of the collapsing structure, fire officials have not been able to confirm if anyone was inside.

However, EFD Fire Chief Russ Knowles said Thursday that investigators did not believe this was the case.

According to Knowles, the fire proved challenging for crews due to the unkempt condition of the building, its odd layout and its location. The building sits directly underneath power lines and very close to the train tracks that run through the area.

The fire prompted the North County Transit District (NCTD) to temporarily halt Sprinter Light Rail train service between the Escondido Transit Center and the Nordahl Station. Train service was delayed until about 3 p.m.

The EFD said San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) had to shut down power in the area as a precaution due to the fire's proximity to power lines. The outage impacted some businesses along Hale Avenue between Metcalf Street and Auto Park Way, and from Hale Avenue south to Valley Parkway.

The fire also led to several road closures in the area for the better part of Thursday.