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Shasta County woman leads police on totally groovy chase

Would you lead police on a high-speed chase through town for a Scooby Snack? A Shasta County woman did just that over the weekend in her very own Mystery Machine. On Sunday, March 6, a Shasta County probation officer contacted the Redding, CA police department about Sharon Kay Turman who was wanted for violating probation, PIX 11 reported. After a short search, police located Turman near the intersection of California and Shasta streets at the wheel of a 1994 Chrysler minivan painted up like the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo. Redding police attempted to stop Turman, but she apparently had an important mystery to investigate and she fled the scene. She sped down South Market Street with Redding Police in hot pursuit, running a red light and hitting four other vehicles in an intersection. This didn't stop the Mystery Machine however, and RPD broke off their chase as she entered southbound Highway 273. A California Highway Patrol helicopter picked her up on Hill Drive just north of Anderson, CA and she was pursued through town by Anderson PD at speeds in excess of 100 mph. She eventually abandoned the Mystery Machine on California Highway 36 and fled on foot. Turman's whereabouts, and the status of the Scooby Snacks, are currently unknown. She is wanted by both the Redding Police Department and Shasta County Probation. Both agencies told KRCRTV that they are asking anyone with information regarding her whereabouts to contact them. Related Video

Fiat Chrysler agrees to new $3.8 billion credit facility with banks

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler said on Thursday it has agreed a new credit facility with two banks, at a time when major carmakers are having to shut down plants, losing revenue as demand slumps in the wake of the coronavirus. Most of FCA's plants around the world are currently shut in response to the virus emergency. Italian investment firm Exor, which controls FCA, said on Wednesday that the temporary closures might continue and increase depending on how the coronavirus outbreak develops. FCA said the credit facility would be available "for general corporate purposes and for working capital needs" of the group and that it was structured as a "bridge facility" to support its access to capital markets. "This transaction confirms the continued strong support of FCA's international key relationship banks in the current extraordinary circumstances," the automaker said in a statement, without making any explicit link between the new facility and the impact the virus is having on the global economy. The facility can be drawn in a single tranche of 3.5 billion euros ($3.8 billion), with an initial 12-month term which can be extended for further six months. It adds to existing credit facilities worth 7.7 billion euros, including lines for 1.5 billion euros that the company has started to draw down, FCA said. FCA is in merger talks with Peugeot owner PSA to create the world's fourth biggest carmaker. The deal is expected to be finalized by the first quarter of next year. Equita's analyst Martino De Ambroggi said that, based on his new assumption of a 10% drop of global auto market this year, the crisis triggered by the coronavirus would impact the merged automaker's free cash flow by over 5 billion euros. Earlier this week, General Motors announced it will draw about $16 billion from its credit lines in a bid to beef up liquidity amid rising business impact from the fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak. And last week, rival Ford abandoned its 2020 forecast and said it was drawing down $15.4 billion from two credit facilities to bolster its balance sheet. Related Video:

Strike looms for FCA workers as soon as Wednesday night

A strike is on the very near horizon for at least some United Auto Workers members at FCA US. On October 6, the union sent a letter to the automaker that officially announced the termination of its agreements with the company as of 11:59 PM on Wednesday, October 7. Assuming that a deal or extension hasn't happened by that time, workers could hit the picket line. While neither side is talking much publicly, it does appear that negotiations are still underway. In a very brief statement, the automaker simply says: "FCA US confirms that it has received strike notification from the UAW. The Company continues to work with the UAW in a constructive manner to reach a new agreement." The UAW seems equally receptive, and it says in a post on Facebook: "Negotiations with FCA continue. Your bargaining team is hard at work and we will continue to post updates when there is more to report." If a strike happens, it could put a serious financial burden on FCA US. Economist Sean McAlinden from the Center for Automotive Research estimates the cost at as much as $40 million per week, according to Reuters. The union hasn't clarified at this time whether all of its workers with the automaker would stop working or if the picket lines would only be at specific plants. The first tentative agreement posted to UAW members working with FCA US utterly failed in voting. Raises and a healthcare co-op would have been among the new benefits. However, the employees were upset that the proposed deal retained a two-tier wage structure, and they also didn't like the lack of details about rumors of major production changes.