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• Lodi man killed in Stockton

• Yet another Starbucks in Lodi area — this one in Flag City

• Sarah Dutra bail hearing delayed

• State 'glitch' causes delay for corn syrup center on Eastside

• Regional Roundup

February 9th, 2010

• Middle College High School rated one of the best — and a bargain, to boot

• Lodi decathlon boasts top team in county

• Man who sparked counterfeit case pleads guilty

• Local businessman will visit Haiti to look for family

• Man who claimed to be Yosemite Sam pleads guilty to meth charge

• David Harmer seeks Republican congressional nod

• Lack of evidence in case against suspect in 'drug deal' stabbing

• Regional Roundup

February 8th, 2010

• Public Meetings

• Locals pick best, most memorable Super Bowl commercials

• Regional Roundup

February 6th, 2010

• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch

• Meet Larry, Curly and Moe

• Baboon business

• Regional Roundup

• Several Lodi venues let you watch the Super Bowl in style

• Lodi Library celebrates 100 years of serving the community

• Culinary craft

February 5th, 2010

• Kids, teachers help Haiti by collecting pennies for Learning Link

• Lodi, Galt students reach out to help Haiti earthquake survivors

• Tasered suspect claims he is Yosemite Sam

• Hours of sweat and work go into putting on crab feeds

• Things looking up for state's real estate

• Correction

• Regional Roundup

• Stray bullet strikes Lodi home; police suspect gang activity may be factor

February 4th, 2010

• Managers at Geweke Toyota answer questions about recall

• Lodi City Council votes to replace play structure at Century Park

• Lodi extends ban on pot shops for another year

• Mokelumne River triathlon set for June

• Family, friends to run half-marathon in memory of Galt family

February 3rd, 2010

• Correction

• Delta College trustees again collide over stipend committee

• Bad bugs, weeds are hot topics at Grape Day

• Lodi-area senators Dave Cox, Lois Wolk admit to gifts; Tom Berryhill case pending

• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts

• Galt City Council avoids budget cuts — for now

• New Lodi Memorial Hospital emergency room opens to the public without a hitch

• Regional Roundup

February 2nd, 2010

• Local business leaders say tourism, Costco, Home Depot may play roles in city's future

• Correction

• Former Lodian Erica Davis is first paraplegic woman to summit Kilimanjaro

• Regional Roundup

• No snow leopards, otters for Micke Grove

• McNerney leads in campaign cash

• Police: Train victim was a Lodi teen

• Big rig plows 7 cars

• Jumpers across California

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• Will terrorists be given Miranda warnings? (75)
• Lodi Unified School District president issues warning to speakers over cuts (64)
• President Obama's first year (45)
• Many reject the politics of 'no' (45)
• Islamic symbol in mosaic — what is all the fuss? (44)
• Writer comments on Neely column (42)
• The Home Depot hopes to join Costco at Reynolds Ranch (41)
• Time to shed the convenient sham of 'Don't ask, don't tell' policy (34)
• We need to conduct respectful conversations (30)
• Tasered suspect claims he is Yosemite Sam (25)

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Lodi man killed in Stockton

23-year-old found shot inside semi truck; no arrests yet

A day after he changed his phone number and obtained domestic violence restraining order forms, a 23-year-old Lodi man was fatally shot after finishing work Tuesday night, his family and investigators said.

Ajmer Hothi

Ajmer Singh Hothi was found shot inside a semi truck around 7:30 p.m. in the 1800 block of South Broadway Avenue in Stockton, San Joaquin County Sheriff's spokesman Les Garcia said. By Wednesday evening, there had been no arrests and investigators had no suspects, said Sgt. Tom Desmarais, head of the homicide unit.

The Tokay High School graduate was making payments on the truck, worked full-time and was planning to bring his wife to the United States from India, said his sister and only sibling, 21-year-old Kiranjit Hothi. Tears filled her eyes as she described going to search for her brother Tuesday night after he failed to return home or answer his phone.

"Around 6:30 or 6:45, I said we should go look for him where he parks his truck. We got there and saw the door open. I said, 'Mom, something's wrong,'" she said. "I tried to wake him. He was blue."

Kiranjit Hothi saw blood on her brother's face and bullet holes through his shirt. She phoned for help but her brother was pronounced dead at the scene.

Garcia had little information on a motive, but family members said Ajmer Hothi had been stalked for months by the family of his ex-girlfriend. The Stockton girl's father had found out about their relationship and wanted Ajmer Hothi to divorce his wife and marry the other girl, Kiranjit Hothi said. Ajmer Hothi refused.

He'd changed his phone number Monday and the family had installed cameras at their Norfolk Drive home, located in a well-kept south Lodi neighborhood of stucco homes with tile roofs.

Strange items, possibly witchcraft-related, were left on their doorstep, his sister said, but they were harmless so the family threw them in the garbage. One time, she said, the ex-girlfriend's family was pounding on the front door late at night until the Hothis called police. They left by the time Lodi officers arrived.

The former girlfriend's family even followed the Hothi family to India in January when they went to a wedding, Kiranjit Hothi said.

Things got worse in recent weeks, she said, when the former girlfriend's father made telephone threats against Ajmer Hothi.

The man could not be reached for comment Wednesday, and Desmairas said detectives were still gathering information from various witnesses. They hadn't ruled out other possibilities, including robbery or a random shooting, he said.

But Ajmer Hothi's parents became so worried that they were trying to get him to move across the country.

He wasn't too sure about the idea, though, because he'd lived in Lodi for a decade, had a good job and was making payments on both the big rig and his car, his sister said.

San Joaquin County court records showed no cases filed against Ajmer Hothi. His sister said he spent his spare time hanging out with friends and family, coming home from work each day and greeting his mother before doing anything else.

"He just loved his parents. He was really a family person," Kiranjit Hothi said. "I just want justice for my brother."

He generally got up early and worked long hours, hauling fruit and various items for a trucking company. Ajmer Hothi would then park his truck at the Stockton truck yard and drive home to Lodi.

There were two exceptions this week: When he never returned home Tuesday and a day earlier, when he left work early in order to get a thick packet of domestic violence restraining order papers. His sister was going to help him fill them out, she said as she looked at the blank forms.

Friends and family spoke in hushed voices in the home Wednesday, and soft sobs echoed through the house. Kiranjit Hothi said her mother hadn't stopped crying and also hadn't slept since finding her only son dead.

"He was a happy-go-lucky guy who just wanted to have fun," said his second cousin, Raje Hothi. "He was so young. He'd just barely started his life."

Contact reporter Layla Bohm at layla@lodinews.com.