Plea deal rejected for Escalante
BULLHEAD CITY – A local judge last Friday rejected a plea agreement for the last of three defendants being prosecuted for a Feb., 2019 drug bust in Mohave Valley. Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle said it was unfair that Javier Escalante, 41, Ontario, California receives less prison time than another co-defendant who was less culpable. Carlisle said a presentence report indicated that Escalante was directing co-defendants Maria Kormes, 33, Mohave Valley and Edgar Melgoza, 39, Fresno, California when drugs were seized from two vehicles during traffic stops. Carlisle sent Melgoza to prison for 7.5 years in October under…