Five people charged with murder in deadly Northern California fireworks warehouse explosion

Five people have been charged with murder in a deadly Northern California explosion at an illegal fireworks warehouse that killed seven people and shook a tiny farming community, authorities said Friday.

The charges stem from a grand jury indictment related to the July 1 explosion that injured two others, Yolo County Deputy District Attorney Clara Nabity said. One of the people charged with murder is Samuel Machado, who was a Yolo County Sheriff's Department lieutenant at the time of the explosion. He illegally stored more than 1 million pounds (453,000 kilograms) of fireworks at his property and used his position at the sheriff's office to evade scrutiny as the operation grew, she said.

The explosion near the community of Esparto, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northwest of Sacramento, sparked a massive fire and led to nearby Fourth of July celebrations being called off.

"Samuel Machado’s participation included using his role as a trusted lieutenant to help shield the conspiracy as it expanded, and the expansion was significant," Nabity said, adding that the warehouse went from having 13 fireworks storage containers in 2015 to 50 last year.

It was not immediately clear if Machado has an attorney who can speak on his behalf. A telephone number listed for him went answered Friday.

Machado's sprawling 5,000-square-foot (465-square-meters) warehouse property was used to store and sell fireworks by other men indicted in the case.

Nabity said a total of eight people face 30 charges in the case, including murder, conspiracy to commit a crime, possession of illegal assault weapons, illegal explosives possession, insurance fraud, child endangerment and animal cruelty.

All those charged are scheduled to be arraigned in Yolo County on Monday.

Machado’s wife, Tammy Machado, was also arrested Thursday but was released after posting bail. She was a non-sworn administrative employee at the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office at the time of the explosion. Both Samuel and Tammy Machado were put on leave after the incident. She faces charges of mortgage fraud, filing a willfully wrong tax return and endangering a child by storing illegal explosives next to a family pool, according to the indictment.

Others indicted include Kenneth Chee, owner of Devastating Pyrotechnics, whose illegal fireworks were being stored at Machado's warehouse, has also been charged with murder and was arrested in Florida. He appeared in a Florida courtroom Friday and was told he will be extradited to California within the week, KCRA-TV reported.

Authorities also arrested Jack Lee, the operations manager for Devastating Pyrotechnic, and Gary Chan Jr., whose name is on the company’s federal license. Both also face murder charges. The fifth person charged with murder is Douglas Tollefsen, who was arrested in Northern California but has yet to be taken to a Yolo County jail, Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said. Tollefsen stored and sold fireworks at Machado's warehouse, according to the indictment.

“This is not a case just about fireworks,” Nabity said. “They are devices that have so much more explosive fireworks than the law allows that they can’t be considered fireworks.”

Machado, Chee, Lee, Chan and Tollefsen were arrested Thursday along with Craig Cutright, the owner of Blackstar Fireworks, which operated at the Esparto property. Cutright, was a volunteer firefighter for the Esparto Fire District and was also listed as an employee of Devastating Pyrotechnics.

One of Cutright’s employees, Ronald Botelho III, has been in custody since December. More than a dozen new charges were filed against him Thursday, jail records show.

The grand jury concluded that the initial blast caused the death of seven people, Nabity said. Those killed included four workers: 18-year-old Jesus Ramos and his 22-year-old Jhony Ramos, of San Pablo, California; 28-year-old Joel Melendez, of Sacramento, and 43-year-old Carlos Javier Rodriguez-Mora, of San Andreas, California. Christopher Goltiao Bocog and Neil Li of San Francisco and Angel Mathew Voller, of Stockton, California, were also killed.

People living nearby described the blast being so strong that it blew open the doors of homes.

Nisa Gutierrez told the Sacramento CBS affiliate KOVR-TV that she and her daughter were in their yard and were nearly knocked over as their pony and goats scattered.

“We hear like a big boom, and feel the wave,” Gutierrez said. “I thought it was a bomb.”

After the explosion, officials in nearby Sutter and Yuba counties announced they would find alternatives for Fourth of July celebrations after their fireworks were destroyed in the blast.

Property damage is shown at the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Property damage is shown at the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A service vehicle drives near damaged property at the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Property damage is shown at the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A No Trespassing sign hangs on a fence outside the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Damaged vehicles are shown at the location of a July 1, 2025, fireworks explosion in Esparto, Calif., Friday, April 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)

Smoke and flames rise during a fireworks warehouse explosion near Esparto, Calif., Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (Kent Porter/The Press Democrat via AP, File)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Denny Hamlin had another bittersweet moment at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday.

Sure, one of his 23XI Racing drivers, Corey Heim, reached victory lane at a crown jewel race. Again. But for Hamlin, it also was a brutal reminder about how frustrating the Brickyard 400 has been for him. Eighteen starts, no wins and another top-five finish.

The good news: All is not lost.

The 45-year-old Hamlin heads into a rare midseason weekend off still leading in points, as one of four drivers locked into the playoffs and second in wins as everyone else spends the next four races trying to fill the other 12 playoffs spots. In the meantime, Hamlin can start game-planning to add the other missing link on his resume — winning a Cup championship.

“I haven’t really thought too much about the future,” Hamlin said in Indianapolis when asked about possibly retiring after next season. "Obviously, (Joe Gibbs Racing) has good plans set in place and whatnot. So, no, I haven’t put any more thought into or second thoughts or anything like that. So, its just really riding the wave of week to week right now and continue trying to get more wins.”

The timing for a break couldn't be better for Hamlin or some other top contenders.

Tyler Reddick owns a season-best five wins and is second in points, but hasn't won since Kansas in April. The 23 XI driver finished 10th in Sunday's race after qualifying third.

Ryan Blaney is third, but had his streak of 11 consecutive top-11 finishes snapped on Indy's 2.5-mile oval after he was caught up in a late, nine-car crash that dropped him to 26th and cost him the $1 million In-Season Challenge prize.

Hamlin's teammate, Ty Gibbs, clinched the fourth playoff spot by earning points in each of the first two stages, leading the second-most laps (46) and finishing 12th at the Brickyard.

Pole winner Carson Hocevar produced his second top 10 in three weeks, but that came after posting just two top 10s in the eight weeks prior to Atlanta. He's fifth in the standings.

Even previous series champs have not been immune from problems.

In addition to Blaney, the 2023 champ, Chase Elliott, the 2020 Cup winner, has finished outside the top 10 in eight consecutive races, and defending Cup champ Kyle Larson's winless streak reached 46 thanks to a flat left rear tire that sent him hard into the wall at Indy. Elliott finished 37th Sunday while Larson was last in the 39-car field.

Still, Elliott is sixth, Larson is eighth and both know they still have time to get things right.

“Storylines can change quick as we all know,” Elliott said. “So three weeks of running good and y'all will be talking about how these guys are championship favorites.”

Once the break ends, though, everyone knows the intensity and pressure will crank up again quickly. They'll head to Iowa on Aug. 9, then Richmond and New Hampshire where the practice sessions will be extended from 25 to 50 minutes before the regular-season finale at Daytona. That's when the 16 playoff contestants embark on a nerve-wracking 10-week shootout for the title.

For many, the 0.875-mile oval also will be a welcome site because many started racing on short tracks.

“I grew up on a three-eighths mile asphalt track similarly shaped to Iowa,” said Ross Chastain, who is trying to fight his way into the playoffs despite having no wins and ranking 21st. “I feel like that's much more what I just ran for so much of my childhood on. So that feels more natural to me than the big oval here (in Indy)."

But for drivers, the break also is a reminder of the high-stakes game still to come — especially for someone like Hamlin, whose partnership with Michael Jordan with 23XI has helped extend his legacy even as he continues chasing two of the Cup's biggest prizes.

“It’s great that we’ve been able to make the changes that we’ve had and built this race team into championship contenders, and it’s exceeded really all the expectations I’ve had for it in such a short amount of time,” Hamlin said. " It’s certainly an honor to be amongst a lot of sport greats.”

AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/apf-AutoRacing

Corey Heim celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Sunday, July 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Crew members perform a pit stop on driver Denny Hamlin's car during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in North Wilkesboro, N.C., Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Denny Hamlin drives into Turn 1 during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race in North Wilkesboro, N.C., Sunday, July 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)