Lewis County Sirens.com

Updated at 7:30 p.m.

FAIL

• Chehalis police arrested a 42-year-old man yesterday at Wal-Mart yesterday for organized retail theft after he allegedly attempted to steal groceries and a chainsaw, and popped over to Home Depot in between where he shoplifted as well. An officer called to the 1600 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue about 6:30 p.m. was told a subject selected various items from the shelves but parked his cart inside near the grocery entrance and then left, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Police were told he went to Home Depot, then returned to Wal-Mart and pushed the loaded cart out the door but was stopped in the parking lot by security personnel, department spokesperson Linda Bailey said. Bailey said, more specifically, the subject let go of the cart and tried to run but tripped on the asphalt and fell on his face. Officers found a portable welder from Home Depot inside his vehicle, she said. Donnie D. Resnik, from Sedro Woolley had a warrant from the state Department of Corrections as well and was booked into the Lewis County Jail, she said.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Chehalis police took a report yesterday from the 1500 block of North National Avenue where someone had tried to break in to a vehicle. It occurred sometime the week before, according to the Chehalis Police Department. The passenger door was discovered pried open, leaving on the interior light which drained the battery, police said.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• The 37-year-old woman who admitted to helping herself to thousands of dollars worth of lottery tickets while she worked at the Flying K store and gas station in Toledo will remain out of custody until formal entry of her sentence is made in Lewis County Superior Court next week. Winlock resident Katrina M. Bowen was fired in September after the owners discovered the thefts that put them into debt, she was charged in January and then pleaded guilty within days of her first appearance before a judge. There was no plea deal. There was no promise of recommending leniency. Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Eric Eisenberg on Wednesday recommended to the judge she get two years, her attorney asked for 90 days. Judge Richard Brosey sentenced Bowen to four years in prison. Eisenberg said today there have been high profile local cases in which defendants were punished with far less time, but noted cases in which the defendants attempted to pay back the money or went through treatment. She started treatment for a gambling problem but only recently, Eisenberg said. “And to be fair to Ms. Bowen, I don’t know if she has any assets to give back,” he said. Eisenberg said he thought Bowen was admitting – through her lawyer – to have taken about $20,000, but the victims’ estimate the amount was at a minimum $60,000 and at a maximum $177,000. How much she will owe in restitution remains to be determined.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license; responses for alarms, misdemeanor theft, collision on city streets, possible child abuse, suspicious circumstances … and more.

Updated at 10:07 p.m.

UNLAWFUL IMPRISONMENT

• A 38-year-old Onalaska man was arrested for unlawful imprisonment yesterday after he allegedly held his mother down on a bed for several hours and refused to let her leave. Deputies called about 4:10 p.m. yesterday to the 1600 block of state Route 508 found Jeffrey A. Church sleeping on a couch and booked him into the Lewis County Jail also for assault and violation of a protection order, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The mother sustained minor scrapes and bruises; deputies were told he had slapped her in the face, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. Brown said she didn’t have any details this morning about why. Church was charged today only with violation of a court order. Charging documents state his mother told a deputy he has been living at the home since he go out of jail in February and that around 11 a.m. yesterday, he jumped onto the bed, put a leg across her shoved her and began calling her names. The slapping went off and on until about 3 p.m. and the mother waited until he went to sleep to call 911, charging documents state.

MOTHER BOOKED FOR ALLEGED CHILD PORN

• The mother of the missing Kayla Croft-Payne has been arrested for alleged possession of child porn. The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said this morning Michelle A. Croft, 47, was picked up yesterday at the 500 block of Augustus Street in Toledo following an approximately two-month investigation into reports that she had shown at least two individuals a video she had of a naked 7-year-old girl touching herself. The Toledo resident was booked into the Lewis County Jail yesterday for possession of a depiction of a minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, according to the sheriff’s office. An initial report from the sheriff’s office indicated one person told a detective the video included an unknown male giving the child direction. Croft is to be released from jail instead of being charged, pending further investigation. Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said they let Croft go because they don’t have enough evidence to convict her of a crime. Croft’s 18-year-old daughter was reported missing the spring of 2010, when she lived in rural Chehalis. Detectives have investigated numerous pieces of information over the years, that have sent them with a cadaver dog to Toutle area, to digging through wells at a Winlock property and elsewhere. A vigil is scheduled for the fourth anniversary of Kayla Croft-Payne’s disappearance, on April 26 at 1 p.m. at Penny Playground in Chehalis.

TEEN TAKES TRUCK, AGAIN

• Chehalis police responded about 8 p.m. yesterday to the 100 block of Northeast Debra Lane after a 14-year-old boy allegedly stole his grandparent’s truck, for the third time in recent weeks. He faces a possible charge of taking a motor vehicle without permission, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

THEFT

• A Vader resident is pointing to an 8-year-old boy following the theft of his collection of Pokemon cards. A deputy contacted the 20-year-old victim yesterday and learned the value is more than $1,000, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The cards and their binders vanished from the 700 block of Main Street sometime since January, according to the sheriff’s office. Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said deputies would like to talk with the suspect whose parents are believed to reside in the Longview-Kelso area, but they’re not putting out a warrant. “He’s 8 years old,” she said.

• Chehalis police were called about noon yesterday to the 2100 block of North National Avenue where a teenage student reported someone stole about $300 from her purse.

• Someone stole a customer’s bag while they were shopping at the 100 block of High Street in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 4:15 p.m. yesterday.

• The 48-year-old man arrested on Tuesday for being a felon in possession of a stolen gun as well as possession of heroin in Centralia has also been arrested now by the sheriff’s office for trafficking in stolen property. Fred H. Isaacson, of Centralia, allegedly sold items on Craigslist that were stolen earlier this month from the 500 block of West Reynolds Avenue, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The items included eight tires “with nice rims,” Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. His second arrest, at the jail, came sometime between Tuesday and this morning, according to Brown. Prosecutors this afternoon said Isaacson has a long criminal history, his defense attorney told a judge it wasn’t that extensive. Lewis County Superior Court Judge Richard Brosey set bail at $25,000 in each of the two cases.

CAR PROWL

• Police were called to the parking lot at Wal-Mart in Chehalis about 1:30 a.m. yesterday when a employee discovered someone had broke into her vehicle and stolen a purse and it contents.

• Centralia police took a report yesterday from the 1100 block of Roosevelt Avenue regarding and overnight attempt by someone to pry open the door to a vehicle.

AMMUNITION MAKING ACCIDENT INJURES WORKER

• Emergency responders were called to the bullet manufacturing business in Packwood last night where an employee was injured while loading shells. Firefighters called around 8 p.m. to the Silver State Armory off U.S. Highway 12 transported the worker to Morton General Hospital with minor burns to his head, arms and neck, Lewis County Fire District 10 Chief Lonnie Goble said. “Somehow the primer went off and set off a clip of about 40 primers,” Goble said. The chief said the injuries were minor, but the accident blew off the victim’s safety glasses and he got “stuff” in his eyes. He was released before the night was over, Goble said.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• Mark A. Johnson, 61, was charged yesterday not with attempted kidnapping but with attempted child molestation and unlawful imprisonment for incidents police learned about occurring at the Peppertree Motel and RV Park in Centralia involving a 12-year-old boy. Both reside at the Alder Street location and after being contacted by the boy’s father, a detective spoke with the child who said Johnson invited him into his room one day in the recent past where they talked about guitars and four-wheelers when the conversation turned sexual, with the older man asking about girls and the size of the boy’s privates, according to charging documents. The boy told the detective that when he went to leave, Johnson pushed him back down on the bed and then exposed his genitals, charging documents state. The boy pushed the man and was able to run out of the room, according to prosecutors. Johnson had complained to the 12-year-old’s father that the 12-year-old had been “coming on to him,” prosecutors wrote. Police arrested him on Tuesday for or attempted second-degree kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment and a warrant, but prosecutors charged him with attempted child molestation and unlawful imprisonment. A judge yesterday ordered Johnson held on $100,000 bail.

WRECKS

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning an 18-year-old Ethel resident was issued a citation for second-degree negligent driving after traveling through an intersection and missing the turn at the 100 block of Damron Road outside Mossyrock, striking a house. It happened about 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday. Neither he nor the 16-year-old girl traveling with him were injured, according to the sheriff’s office. Further details about damage to the structure was not readily available.

• A Centralia woman is listed in fair condition today after her northbound car crossed the median into the southbound lanes of Interstate 5 near Castle Rock yesterday afternoon. Troopers called about 3:25 p.m. found both cars destroyed. The investigating trooper reports Angelina Puris, 63, from Centralia, lost control of her Nissan Sentra, and then swerved to the left where it was struck by an oncoming Mazda MZ3. Robert F. Huling, 72, of Ridgefield, and Puris were both injured and transported to St. John Medical Center in Longview, according to the Washington State Patrol. Puris was then transferred to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland, according to the state patrol.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license, protection order violation, misdemeanor assault, misdemeanor theft; responses for alarms, suspicious circumstances, collision on city street … and more.

Car one from wreck on Interstate 5 near Castle Rock. / Courtesy photo by Washington State Patrol

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Car two from wreck on Interstate 5 near Castle Rock. / Courtesy photo by Washington State Patrol

STOLEN FIREARM

• Centralia police were at the 1300 block of Lakeshore Drive around 9 a.m. yesterday following an investigation by the department’s specialized Anti-Crime Team and arrested a 48-year-old man for being a felon in possession of a stolen gun as well as possession of heroin. Fred H. Isaacson, of Centralia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail,  according to the Centralia Police Department.

K-9 PURSUES WANTED SUBJECT

• Deputies responded about 11:40 a.m. yesterday to the 600 block of Leudinghaus Road west of Chehalis to a home where a 36-year-old man reportedly violated a no-contact order. When they arrived, a woman there said he had left, but a Centralia police officer and his K-9 partner subsequently tracked him to a wooded area behind the house near Chandler Road, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Phillip R. McCarty, who was captured with the police dog’s teeth, said he wasn’t fleeing, but had been sleeping in the thick brush near a stump after taking a walk, according to the sheriff’s office. The Doty resident was booked into the Lewis County Jail for a warrant, for violating an order and also for burglary as he had apparently entered the residence uninvited, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. McCarty is scheduled to appear in court today regarding the warrant but not being charged with burglary, pending further investigation.

POLICE: WOMAN ATTEMPTS CONVERSION OF FOOD BENEFITS TO CASH

• A 39-year-old woman was arrested yesterday after she allegedly used someone else’s food stamp card at Safeway in Chehalis, asking at least one other customer if she could purchase their groceries in exchange for cash, according to the Chehalis Police Department. An officer responding about 4:30 p.m. to the South Market Boulevard store discovered the card belonged to a Chehalis man who said he did not give the woman permission to use it, according to police. Cristi Wright, of Centralia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree theft, department spokesperson Linda Bailey said.

THEFT OF TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

• Centralia police took a report about 11:30 a.m. yesterday from the 200 block of Ash Street regarding a theft in which a red Craftsman push mower and a blue rolling tool box were stolen.

• Chehalis police responded yesterday morning to the the 2000 block of Northeast Kresky Avenue to take a report of a 1000-watt Honda generator and an orange Stihl  044 Magnum chainsaw missing from city’s public works shed. The loss is estimated at more than $1,600, according to the Chehalis Police Department. The items were taken sometime in the previous 45 days, according to police.

METAL THEFT

• A deputy was called yesterday afternoon to the 400 block of Bones Road east of Toledo where a property owner reported that since Friday someone had been cutting fencing wire to steal metal fence posts along an approximately 300-foot stretch of land. The loss is more than $500, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Someone stole a purse from a car at the 1100 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 9 o’clock yesterday morning.

ARREST FOR ATTEMPTED KIDNAP

• A 61-year-old Centralia area man was arrested yesterday following an investigation into an incident involving a 12-year-old boy at an RV park on Alder Street in Centralia, according to the Centralia Police Department. Mark A. Johnson was booked into the Lewis County Jail for attempted second-degree kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment and a warrant, according to police. Further details were not readily available.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants; responses for shoplifting, suspicious circumstances, collision on city street … and more.

“OPEN CARRY” OF RIFLE LEADS TO ARREST

• A deputy traveling along the 1200 block of state Route 506 in Vader about 11 a.m. yesterday stopped to talk with two males sitting on a guard rail, one of which had a rifle strapped to his backpack which turned out to be stolen, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Inside the pack were two pistols, one of which was also stolen, according to the sheriff’s office. One of the guns was missing from Longview and the other from Lincoln County, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. Arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for possession of stolen firearms was Joshua Jordan, 36, of Longview, Brown said.

STOLEN FIREARMS

• Centralia police responded about 4:30 p.m. yesterday to a report of a handgun and jewelry stolen from a residence on the 1100 block of South Schueber Road.

• A deputy took a report from an 88-year-old Centralia area man yesterday who said the night before when he returned to his residence on the 3800 block of Cooks Hill Road after giving a ride home to a female he knew only as Felicia he realized his Ruger 22 caliber revolver was missing. The man said he normally keeps the gun on an end table by his chair, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Law enforcement are attempting to locate the visitor, according to the sheriff’s office.

AUTO THEFT

• A black 1993 Honda Civic was reported stolen yesterday from the 900 block of B Street in Vader. A deputy learned from the 60-year-old owner he parked the car in front of the house about 6 p.m. on Sunday and when he went back out at 6 a.m. yesterday, it was gone. It has an Oregon license plate of ZUB 478, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

BREAK-INS

• A resident on the 1900 block of U.S. Highway 12 in Ethel reported yesterday discovering someone had kicked in a door to his detached garage, although nothing appeared to be missing. A responding deputy learned from the man’s mother who lives down the road that about 15 minutes before an alarm went off, a thin not very tall male with short hair had come to her home asking for gas or a ride to get some gas, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The subject dressed in a white T-short and blue jeans left in the direction of her son’s place, according to the sheriff’s office.

• A deputy was called yesterday afternoon to the 300 block of Russell Road in Winlock where a neighbor taking care of the lawn reported finding forced entry to two outbuildings sometime since Friday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. It’s not clear what might be missing as the property owner who resides in California hasn’t arrived yet to take inventory, according to the sheriff’s office.

DRUGS

• Centralia police were talking with a 24-year-old Lacey man yesterday  in connection with a forgery case at the 1200 block of Harrison Avenue and discovered he was in possession of suspected methamphetamine. Caleb L. Roney was arrested for possession and booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

BURNING BRUSH

• Riverside Fire Authority was called about 2 p.m. yesterday to the 700 block of Teitzel Road where a grass fire got out of control. An area of about 100 feet by 100 feet burned and they extinguished it, Capt. Casey McCarthy said.

COLLISIONS

• Troopers called yesterday morning to milepost 75 of U.S. Highway 12 in Ethel found a chip truck on its side but the driver apparently uninjured. Lewis County Fire District 8 was called a couple of hours following the incident to take the driver to the hospital, Fire Chief Duran McDaniel said.

• People inside Rite-Aid felt the building shake and items along the inside wall fell to the floor following a traffic stop in Chehalis last night. It was just before 9:15 p.m. when an officer traveling along the 500 block of South Market Boulevard attempted to pull over a Honda Accord because of an exhaust system issue, according to the Chehalis Police Department. The female driver turned into the retailer’s parking lot, the officer heard a sound of grinding as though the brakes failed and the car went into the building, department spokesperson Linda Bailey said. None of the three occupants were injured, but the impact left scuff marks on the exterior brickwork and damage to the license plate and bumper area, Bailey said. A 20-year-old passenger, Alex M. Folden of Centralia, was arrested and booked for an outstanding warrant from the state Department of Corrections, according to police. Bailey said she didn’t yet know if the driver was cited.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants; responses for disputes, shoplifting, suspicious circumstances … and more.

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CORRECTION: The roundup has been updated to correctly reflect the source of information regarding the arrest on state Route 506 for possession of stolen firearms

Westbound truck wrecks in Ethel. / Courtesy photo by Washington State Patrol

FIREARMS, FOOD, SMOKES MISSING AFTER ONY BREAK-IN

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning they are investigating evidence left at the scene of a burglary in Onalaska in which four rifles, two shotguns a bow and it arrows were among the more than $4,000 worth of valuables stolen. Also taken were a carton of Camel cigarettes, various groceries, $200 cash and other property, according to the sheriff’s office. The break-in at the 300 block of Dluhosh Road took place sometime between 4:15 a.m. on Friday and 8:15 p.m. the same day, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

COMPUTER STOLEN

• Centralia police were called to the 1400 block of Lewis Street about 11:15 p.m. on Saturday where a resident reported someone came into his apartment and stole a laptop computer.

RV INTRUDER CHASED, GETS AWAY

• Centralia police are investigating an incident from about 3 a.m. on Saturday in which a male was caught by a resident entering a travel trailer at the 1300 block of Belmont Avenue. There was a brief struggle and the subject fled, pursued by the resident but escaped, according to the Centralia Police Department.

INTOXICATED TEEN HOSPITALIZED

• Police contacted a 19-year-old Centralia resident about 2 a.m. on Sunday for allegedly assaulting his younger brother, but the suspect had drank so much alcohol he was left in the hands of medical providers at Providence Centralia Hospital, according to police. Christopher H. Tucker was arrested for misdemeanor assault as well as minor consuming alcohol in connection with the incident at the 500 block of Hillkress Street, according to the Centralia Police Department.

CAR PROWL

• A 42-year-old homeless person was arrested late yesterday afternoon for vehicle prowl in the second degree after contact with an officer at the 200 block of West Reynolds Avenue in Centralia. Paul I. Ramirez was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FRAUD AND TRICKERY

• A 69-year-old Chehalis woman who did volunteer work at St. Mary Catholic Church in Centralia contacted police on Saturday morning to report when she attempted to file her tax return, she learned one had already been submitted using her social security number, according to the Chehalis Police Department. An individual at the 1000 block of Orton Street in Centralia contacted police the day before to report someone tried to file their tax return.

• Centralia police say that as of Friday, they had received multiple reports of a male phoning area businesses advising they are behind in their utility or gas bills and attempting to persuade them to pay up by purchasing a cash card and supplying him with the number.

VEHICLE THEFT

• A Morton man whose 1975 cargo van was stolen at the end of January was contacted after it turned up late Friday night abandoned in a wooded area off the 100 block of Roundtop Road in Mineral, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

SUSPICIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES NETS THREE

• A pair of 53-year-old Chehalis men were arrested for trespassing around 8:30 a.m. on Sunday after someone reported people cutting firewood behind a storage business near the 100 block of Gershick Road in Silver Creek. David R. Shive and Timothy C. Johnson were cited, and a trooper who initially responded arrested a third person, Tay Salazar, on an outstanding warrant, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Salazar was booked into the Lewis County Jail, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

VANDALISM

• Chehalis police responded about 5:15 p.m. on Friday to a report kids were throwing rocks off the West Street bridge in Chehalis, with one hitting the windshield of a car. No suspects were located, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

WRECKS

• A 14-year-old passenger and a 4-year-old passenger escaped injury when a 33-year-old Chehalis woman rolled and wrecked her car yesterday evening at the 100 block of Antrim Road outside Winlock. A deputy responding following the approximately 6:15 p.m. collision was told by the driver the sun got in her eyes at a curve and she swerved to miss another vehicle causing her to run into the ditch, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The Ford Focus was described as totaled; the driver complained of head pain and was cited for second-degree negligent driving as the deputy concluded she was traveling about 52 mph in a 35 mph zone, according to the sheriff’s office.

• An 18-year-old Chehalis woman was hospitalized following a single-vehicle wreck in which she reportedly fell asleep at the wheel on state Route 6 just east of Schueber Road near Chehalis on Saturday night. Madison L. Tereski was westbound in a Honda Civic when the car veered to the right, traveled down an embankment, rolled and came to rest in a d itch, according to the Washington State Patrol. Troopers responding about 11:50 p.m. blamed fatigued driving and were to issue a citation for wheels off the roadway, according to the state patrol. Tereski was taken to Providence Centralia Hospital with unspecified injuries. Her car was totaled, the investigating trooper reported.

DOG, OWNER, SOUGHT FOLLOWING HIT AND RUN

• Centralia police were called about 11:30 a.m. yesterday after a large dog chasing a cat across a street collided with a vehicle, causing a large amount of damage to the vehicle. The driver described the canine as a Pit Bull and told police she made contact with its owner, who then left the scene, according to the Centralia Police Department. It happened in the area of East Plum and South Gold street, and remains under investigation, according to police.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license, misdemeanor domestic assault; responses for alarms, disputes, children fighting, misdemeanor theft, suspicious circumstances, collisions on city streets and county roads, canine tangled in its dog run, children on roof of elementary school, a flash then a bang like a bomb that shook a house, customer using bad checks for purchase and then returning merchandise for a refund, unknown person smearing peanut butter and unidentified substance on windshield of vehicle and windows of house, Justin A. Beaber, 27, Centralia, was cited for failing to transfer the title to his vehicle within 45 days; complaints of music blaring from a parked vehicle, a man in a bathrobe digging through a cigarette butt can on a someone else’s porch, running dogs, barking dog, dog in the wrong backyard … and more.

Updated at 9:40 p.m.

FIREARMS STOLEN

• Centralia police were called to the 1100 block of Roosevelt Avenue late yesterday afternoon regarding the theft of three handguns along with a jar of change from a residence. It’s not clear how someone gained entry or when the burglary occurred, according to the Centralia Police Department.

VEHICLE PROWL

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reports this morning that about $1,800 worth of tools and equipment were stolen from an unlocked service truck a the 100 block of Central Avenue in Onalaska sometime between 9 p.m. on Tuesday and 7 a.m. on Wednesday.

VANDALISM

• A deputy responded to the 1200 block of Wildwood Road in Curtis yesterday morning to take a report of someone breaking a window to a truck during the night.

DRUGS

• A deputy was called to Onalaska High School yesterday afternoon where the principal said he learned from a student that a 15-year-old girl had some marijuana. The case was referred to juvenile prosecutors for a possible charge of possession, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

WANTED PERSON

• A 50-year-old Tacoma man was arrested for making a false statement after a deputy was advised early this morning of a wanted subject parked at the Mossyrock dam turnout. The sheriff’s office said Nicholas A. WIld denied having a warrant, denied ever being arrested before, denied being a registered sex offender and gave his brother’s name as his own. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail also for warrants, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• Matthew D. Westlin, 25, was allowed to remain free on a $15,000 signature bond after appearing in Lewis County Superior Court this week to face seven charges of third-degree assault. Prosecutors allege that on Feb. 9 at Providence Centralia Hospital, the confused and combative patient spit on five hospital staff, urinated on another and bit the finger of a security guard, according to court documents. His arraignment is scheduled for March 27. Third-degree assault carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants,  misdemeanor domestic assault, drug offenses for which information was not readily available; responses for disputes, misdemeanor theft, runaway juveniles, suspicious circumstances,  collisions on city streets and county roads… and more.

MATTRESS CATCHES FIRE

• Riverside Fire Authority was called to a home on Wayne Drive around 10 o’clock this morning where residents were attempting to drag a burning mattress outside. Nobody was hurt, but it flared up and scorched a wall, Fire Capt. Erik Olson said. “It smoked up the house pretty well,” Olson said. Crews removed the smoke, and suspect the smoldering was related to smoking materials, according to Olson.

SNACK ATTACK

• A deputy was called about 6:30 a.m. yesterday to an espresso stand in the 100 block of Carlisle Avenue in Onalaska after a customer asked for the time and then grabbed a handful of candy bars, muffins and doughnut holes and left. A 17-year-old fitting a description of the subject was subsequently contacted in the 100 block of Central Avenue and arrested for third-degree theft and booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The $22 worth of snacks were returned, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

THEFT OF MONEY

• Centralia police took a report about 9 a.m. yesterday from the the 1100 block of Borthwick Street regarding $1,700 missing cash from a home.

FRAUD AND TRICKERY

• Chehalis police were contacted yesterday by a woman who was notified by her bank that someone had created and used a check featuring her account number but a different name.

• Centralia police were contacted yesterday afternoon by an individual at the 1000 block of Belmont Avenue regarding the fraudulent use of their debit card in California.

• Centralia police took another report yesterday from someone  whose social security number was was used by someone else to file a tax return.

• Chehalis police were contacted yesterday by a woman who said she received a threatening phone call from someone who said since she failed to file a tax return, they were going to send someone to her home. Detective Sgt. Gary WIlson said it was an attempt to coerce her into revealing personal information, probably so it could be used fraudulently. Wilson took the opportunity to remind folks if they are contacted by someone asking for such information, never, ever give it out. The Associated Press reports the IRS issued a statement today saying thousands of victims have lost more than $1 million in the largest phone scam the agency has ever seen with callers demanding payment by pre-paid debit card or wire transfers, threatening arrest, deportation or loss of a business or driver’s license.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, shoplifting; responses for alarms, disputes, misdemeanor theft, protection order violation, collisions on city streets … and more.