Lewis County Sirens.com

THEFT

• Centralia police were called to the 800 block of South Pearl Street around 9:30 a.m. yesterday about a burglary to a shed. Somebody cut a lock and stole a compressor, a ‘reciprocating” saw and other tools, according to the Centralia Police Department.

WITNESS TAMPERING

• One of the individuals charged last week with dealing methamphetamine in the east end of Lewis County was back in front of a judge yesterday after allegedly scaring an informant in the case. James D. Hamrick, 29, was charged with witness tampering. Lewis County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher said Hamrick made a phone call from the jail to someone wanting the informant to be picked up and taken somewhere. “He’s now in hiding and we’re real concerned about the “CI’s” safety in the case,” Meagher told the judge. Hamrick was charged last week with two counts of delivery of methamphetamine and one count of possession with intent to deliver. He is already being held on $50,000 bail, but yesterday Judge Richard Brosey ordered him held on the new charge on $100,000 bail.

THEFT

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office this morning reported they are investigating the theft of approximately $19,000 worth of jewelry from a residence on Bearview Drive east of Chehalis. It happened sometime between October and Dec. 17, according to the sheriff’s office. No other details were released.

• Someone stole the heater out of “Santa’s House” on the 300 block of Spooner Road outside Chehalis, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy called to the address learned that the 150,000 BTU kerosene space heater went missing sometime between 3 p.m. and midnight on Christmas Eve, according to the sheriff’s office. Santa’s House is a holiday display on the edge of the property where the item was stored, sheriff’s Cmdr. Steve Aust said.

• Centralia police were called to the 800 block of South Tower Avenue about 5 p.m. Tuesday regarding a burglary to a garage. The case is still under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Some 50 feet of copper wire was cut down from power poles between Randle and Morton sometime between Dec. 22 and yesterday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The loss the Lewis County PUD is estimated at $800.

FAKE PRESCRIPTION

• Police were called to the 500 block of South Tower Avenue in Centralia about 3:45 p.m. Tuesday to a report of forged prescriptions.

VANDALISM

• A deputy took a report yesterday about two tires being punctured last night on Central Avenue in Onalaska, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

CHRISTMAS DAY FIRE CHASES WINLOCK COUPLE OUTSIDE

• A Winlock couple awoke Christmas morning to a house filled with smoke and a fire burning items next to their gas fireplace. Firefighters from Lewis County Fire District 15 and three neighboring departments called about 5:30 a.m. to the single-story home on the 1100 block of Mill Street knocked down the flames fairly quickly, keeping the fire damage to a minimum, according to Firefighter Patrick Jacobson. However, the home sustained a lot of smoke damage, he said. No injuries were reported. The cause isn’t yet known, he said.

DRUGS

• A call about a man with a knife trying to break into a trailer on the 1200 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia early yesterday ended with an arrest for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, according to the Centralia Police Department. Officers called just before 3 a.m. reported that Jerome A. Markert, 36, threw down the knife, fled on foot and then fought with police when he was caught. Police say he also he also tossed a set of scales while he was being chased. Markert, a Chehalis resident, was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• A 21-year-old Pe Ell resident was arrested for possession of methamphetamine yesterday evening after police contacted what they described as a suspicious vehicle in a motel parking lot on the 1300 block of Lakeshore Drive in Centralia. A drug sniffing dog from Winlock “alerted” on the vehicle, according to police and a subsequent search turned up drugs. Tyler P. Chavez was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Centralia police arrested a 48-year-old Olympia man around 8 p.m. on Sunday at the 1200 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia for a warrant and then possession of suspected methamphetamine and heroin with intent to deliver, according to the Centralia Police Department. Donald L. Peters was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• A traffic stop about 10 p.m. on Saturday at Mellen Street and Interstate 5 ended with two individuals getting arrested for possession of methamphetamine, according to Centralia police.  Frank L. Mako, 27, of Chehalis, and Ashley A. Guntrum, 25, of Centralia, were booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• A 26-year-old Centralia man was arrested for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver after a traffic stop about 2 a.m. on Saturday along the 1100 block of South Market Boulevard in Chehalis, according to police. Douglas M. Capelli was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

THEFT

• A Matthews compound bow, a Mead telescope and a baby monitor were reported missing after a burglary on the 100 block of Kiona Road outside Randle, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. It happened sometime between 7 p.m. on Sunday and 5:30 a.m. yesterday, according to the sheriff’s office. The loss is estimated at $2,100.

• Police were called about 1 a.m. on Saturday about a residential burglary on Southwest 13th Street in Chehalis. Among the items missing were a television, a game system and a laptop computer, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

• Police were called on Saturday to the 700 block of South Gold Street in Centralia about an overnight burglary to a garage. Among the items missing were a table saw and a chain saw, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Centralia police took a report yesterday morning from the 1700 block of Midway Court where someone had broken into a truck over the weekend and stolen the battery and about four gallons of gas.

• Police called about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday to the 300 block of North Rock Street in Centralia were told a laptop computer was stolen from a vehicle.

• A GPS device, CDs and other items were reported missing from a car prowl on the 3000 block of Borst Avenue in Centralia on Saturday.

VANDALISM

• Two young women were jailed after allegedly taking baseball bats to a car early Saturday on the 400 block of Oakview Avenue East in Centralia. A deputy called about 4 a.m. was told the vandalism to the 1997 Buick Park Avenue was related to an argument over an ex-boyfriend, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Arrested and booked into the Lewis County jail for first-degree malicious mischief were Melissa R. Salazar, 20, and Mariann J. Hylton, 23, both of Centralia, according to the sheriff’s office.

• Centralia police were called Saturday morning to the 700 block of G Street in Centralia where someone had broken the windows out a vehicle.

• Chehalis police were called Friday to Southwest William Avenue and a complaint someone had thrown pudding on a house.

BARTENDER ASSAULTED

• A 33-year-old Centralia resident was arrested after an incident just before 2 a.m. on Saturday a the 500 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia in which police were told he refused to pay his tab and took a swing at a bartender. Shane P. Harless reportedly left the bar and was later located by police. Harless was booked into the Lewis County Jail for misdemeanor assault and third-degree theft, according to the Centralia Police Department.

OCTOBER CRANE ACCIDENT IN DRYAD PROMPTS CITATION

• The state Department of Labor and Industries fined another state agency after concluding the October accident in which a crane tipped over as it was removing the temporary bridge in the Dryad-Meskill was caused by failing to deploy the outriggers to the crane. Inspectors found the operator was attempting to lift a 577-pound section of the so-called Bailey Bridge, with the boom extended out about 77 feet, according to a Labor and Industries spokesperson. The state Department of Transportation was fined $4,550 and has appealed the citation, according to spokesperson Hector Castro. KOMOnews.com reported at the time three workers suffered minor injuries.

MAN HOSPITALIZED AFTER TENINO ATTACK WITH BAT

• A pair of Tenino men were jailed overnight after allegedly beating a 25-year-old man and hitting him in the head with a baseball bat. It happened about 12:45 a.m. on the 2800 block of Angus Drive Southeast outside Tenino, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. The victim, a 25-year-old Lacey resident, was taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia where he was treated and has been released, the sheriff’s office reported. Sheriff’s Sgt. Ray Brady said the two confronted the victim about some “unkind things” said about his ex-girlfriend. The sheriff’s office said they met up with the victim as he was leaving his father’s residence and hit him, bit him and broke a window out of his vehicle before striking him with the aluminum bat. Arrested and booked into the Thurston County Jail for second-degree assault were Joel E. Lewis, 29, and Richard A. Mickelson, 27, both of Tenino, according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

SANTA, REINDEER, TREE STOLEN FROM CENTRALIA YARD

• Centralia police were called about 9:40 p.m. yesterday to the 100 block of East Fourth Street where someone had made off with several outdoor Christmas decorations including a lighted metal reindeer, an inflatable Santa snow globe and an inflatable tree which Santa pops out of, according to the Centralia Police Department.

THEFT

• Police were called about 11 p.m. yesterday to the 200 block of L Street in Centralia about a Browning 9 mm handgun taken from a vehicle.

• Archery equipment valued at $700 was stolen from an unlocked vehicle on Southwest 10th Street in Chehalis, according to a report taken yesterday morning by police. Missing is a Matthews Reezen bow and attachments.

• Centralia police took a report about 1:40 a.m. today about the theft of a camera from a vehicle yesterday.

• Chehalis police were contacted yesterday by an individual who learned that someone had created their own checks using the routing number for his Chehalis-based bank account. A small amount of money was stolen before the account was closed, according to police.

WRECK

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reports a head-on collision yesterday evening at Graf and Scammon Creek roads outside Centralia was caused by a 73-year-old Centralia man driving under the influence. He was taken to Providence Centralia Hospital to be checked out so he was referred for a charge of DUI and not jailed, according to the sheriff’s office. There were no injuries but his truck was described as totaled and the other vehicle sustained major damage, according to the deputy’s report.

FIRE CLAIMS SALKUM HOUSE, PETS

• A Salkum family escaped a fire last night that destroyed their home and killed several pets. Firefighters from three departments called about 12:20 a.m. to the 100 block of Orchard Drive off Spencer Road found the two-story house fully engulfed in flames, according to Lewis County Fire District 8 Assistant Chief Don Taylor. It was an open loft-type construction so the fire had a lot of room to build, Taylor said. It was finally contained after about two hours, he said. One woman trying to get her animals out suffered smoke inhalation, but didn’t want to go the hospital, according to Taylor. Two other adults and three small children were fine, he said. A Labrador dog and one cat got out, but four small dogs were found deceased under a bed, he said. There was one bright spot, according to Taylor. “We assumed because of the intensity of the fire all the unaccounted-for pets had perished” but beneath the pile of dogs, a cat was found alive, he said. Firefighters administered oxygen to the singed cat and this morning it was going to be taken to a veterinarian, he said. The fire seemed to have begun in the garage area, he said.

ONALASKA PANTRY FIRE EXTINGUISHED

• Firefighters were called just before 1 o’clock this morning to a home off Middle Fork Road in Onalaska where wood stove ashes had begun smoldering in a waste basket in a pantry. A father got the family outside safely and the damage was minimal, Lewis County Fire District 1 Chief Mark Conner said.

THEFT

• A deputy took a report yesterday of several thousand dollars worth of tools and various equipment stolen from an outbuilding on the 5500 block of Jackson Highway near Toledo, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. It occurred sometime between Monday and Wednesday, according to the sheriff’s office.

• A Playstation and a compressor were among the items missing after a burglary to a house and garage on the 300 block of North Buckner Street in Centralia, according to the Centralia Police Department. It was reported at noon time yesterday.

• A Centralia man who got up early yesterday morning to walk his dog discovered both his $8,000 mower and the car trailer it had been loaded onto missing. A deputy called about 7 a.m. to the 1500 block of South Schueber Road was told they had been parked in front of the man’s shop the night before. The mower is red and the home made trailer is 18-feet long and black, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• Centralia police took a report of a vehicle prowl to a motor home yesterday evening from the 1100 block of Crosby Avenue.

WOMAN ARRESTED AFTER SEEKING SHELTER IN TRAVEL TRAILER

• A 46-year-old woman was arrested overnight after she broke into a travel trailer in Centralia apparently seeking a warm place to stay, according to the Centralia Police Department. Police called just after midnight to the 300 block of North Iron Street found a heater inside had been turned on but nothing missing. Lisa A. Palmer, of Centralia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail for burglary, according to police.

UNDER THE INFLUENCE AND STUCK ON RAILROAD TRACKS

• A 70-year-old driver was arrested after he somehow got his vehicle stuck on railroad tracks in Centralia and was found to be driving under the influence of drugs. Police called about 7:15 p.m. yesterday to the 900 block of South Tower Avenue booked James G. Hangartner into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

THREE-YEAR-OLD PEDESTRIAN SURVIVES NEAR MISS BY PASSING VEHICLE

• A toddler escaped injury yesterday when she apparently got out of her father’s hand stepped into a Centralia street and was brushed by a passing vehicle. Police and aid called about 6:50 p.m. to Main and Rock streets said the 3-year-old girl was unhurt. The “bump” apparently spun her around but didn’t knock her down, Riverside Fire Authority Capt. Ken Colombo said. The driver was not cited, according to police.

THEFT

• A pair of teenage brothers were arrested yesterday for second-degree burglary after they allegedly crawled through the  window of a neighbor’s mobile home in Centralia. Police, called about 12:30 p.m. to the 1700 block of Harrison Avenue, were told the boys were looking for batteries for a “remote control something”, police said. The 14-year-old and his 15-year-old brother were booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center.

• Centralia police were called about 6:30 a.m. today to the 100 block of Sunnyside Drive in Centralia where a .22 caliber rifle had been stolen from a vehicle overnight. The missing gun is a Winchester 77, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Police took a report yesterday of a vehicle prowl on the 1000 block of South Schueber Road in Centralia in which a purse had been stolen  last Thursday. The vehicle had been unlocked, according to the Centralia Police Department.

SCHOOL BUS DRIVER QUITS AFTER ALCOHOL TEST

• Police were called after a Chehalis school bus driver finished her morning route reportedly smelling of alcohol last week. The driver, identified as a 58-year-old woman who has been driving a school bus for more than 20 years, resigned rather than be fired, Chehalis School District Superintendent Ed Rothlin said today. While she lost her job, she’s not likely to be arrested for driving under the influence because there was quite a time delay in the reporting, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Two employees reported to the transportation supervisor the driver smelled of alcohol about 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday and the driver was taken for a blood alcohol test in which she tested somewhere between .04 and .08, according to police and the school district. Rothlin didn’t divulge what the level was but said the drug and alcohol policy is strictly enforced and anything above .04 is grounds for discipline. Police weren’t called until about 11 a.m., after the driver had been tested and allowed to go home, according to Deputy Chief Randy Kaut. The school board held a special meeting on Friday to accept her resignation, Rothlin said.

FIGHTS

• A scuffle in a parking lot about 2 o’clock this morning on the 1000 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia ended with two reportedly intoxicated individuals arrested, a man for assaulting his girlfriend and the girlfriend for grabbing the officer to get the officer off her boyfriend, according to police. Police were called at about 2:10 a.m. when witnesses observed 27-year-old Darrell S. Maxfield assault a woman, according to the Centralia Police Department. Maxfield refused to comply with orders and was taken to the ground and the female repeated came at the officer, according to police. The un-named woman was booked for third-degree assault and Maxfield was booked for fourth-degree assault, according to Centralia Police Department.

• A 47-year-old Packwood man reportedly “squared off” with police and wound up getting taken to the ground and Tased yesterday evening on the 500 block of North Pearl Street,  according to Centralia Police Department. Charles A. Park was booked into the Lewis County Jail after the approximately 5 p.m. incident that involved a warrant arrest, according to police.

• A woman arrested for possession of marijuana after trying to pick a fight on the 400 block of West Third Street in Centralia last night was subsequently also arrested for second-degree malicious mischief when she used the backseat of a patrol car for a toilet, according to police. Lisa A. Palmer, 46, of Oakville,  was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Centralia Police Department. The patrol car was taken out of service so it could be sanitized, according to police. She was released without charging.

RESTAURANT CASH AND CHECKS STOLEN

• Police were called yesterday evening after two purses containing thousands of dollars in cash as well as customers checks were stolen from a restaurant on the 600 block of North National Avenue in Chehalis. A group of people had come in to the Ocean Sky inquiring about banquet facilities and it seems it they could have been intentionally distracting the employee while the purses were snagged, according to Chehalis police.

SHERIFF’S OFFICE: MOSSY STORE BURGLARIES SOLVED

• Four teenage boys are facing arrest for two August break-ins at a Mossyrock-area store in which cash, boxes of candy, cans of Monster energy drinks were stolen, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. Deputies followed up on local rumors and found a 14-year-old and three 15-year-olds who admitted to the burglaries at the Mossyrock Park store and cafe on the 200 block of Ajlune Road, according to the sheriff’s office. The loss is estimated to as much as $2,500, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. The case is being referred for possible charges, Brown said.

FRIEND EMPTIES, THEN REFILLS  MAN’S BANK ACCOUNT

• A 35-year-old Centralia man was arrested for 13 counts of forgery following a report taken Monday from a longtime friend and former roommate on West Roanoke Street that his checking account had been emptied. The victim thought the checks had been stolen sometime since Nov. 1, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. When Beau J. Armstrong was arrested, a deputy learned he had just deposited $3,225 into the account, possibly to cover up what he had done, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. Armstrong was booked into the Lewis County Jail, Brown said.

SISTER TAKES WOMAN’S CHECKS

• Tracy L. McPherson, 41, was arrested Thursday for second-degree theft after allegedly stealing a checkbook from her sister’s Onalaska home and writing some two dozen checks at grocery stores and Home Depot, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said yesterday. She said she was paying off debts, according to Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown.

THEFT

• Centralia police on Friday took a report of a missing bank deposit bag containing more than $1,000. A business from out of the area contacted police about the possible theft after the money was not deposited into a Centralia bank, police said. The case is under investigation.

• Unspecified household items were stolen in a burglary at the 1100 block of Mellen Street in Centralia which was reported about 11:30 a.m. yesterday.

•  A 1991 Ford Ranger was reported stolen sometime between 10 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m. on Saturday from the 900 block of state Route 7 outside Morton, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The truck has a license plates reading B744058, according to the sheriff’s office.

• A 2003 Ford F350 pickup stolen from the 300 block of Newaukum Valley Road outside Chehalis was found stuck in a creek off the same road on Saturday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• A Chehalis man called the sheriff’s office on Friday when he spotted his stolen utility trailer being pulled behind a pickup at the Rock Shop in Ethel and the truck was subsequently stopped on the 800 block of Gish Road in Onalaska, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. David Shive, 51, of Toledo, told the deputy he’d borrowed in from a friend on Tucker Road but the friend said he didn’t know anything about that, according to the sheriff’s office. Shive was booked into the Lewis County Jail for possession of stolen property, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said this morning.

• Three surveillance cameras were reported stolen from a business and apartment building on the 500 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia on Sunday afternoon, according to police.

• Police were called about 5:20 p.m. yesterday to a car prowl on the 500 block of West Third Street in Centralia.

• Keys and a knife were reported stolen from a vehicle on the 100 block of Jalyn Street in Centralia on Friday afternoon.

DRUGS

• A 25-year-old Centralia woman was arrested about 8:30 p.m. yesterday for possession of methamphetamine, according to Centralia Police Department. Ericka D. Romero was booked into jail following her contact with police at Mellen and Alder streets, according to police.

• A 53-year-old Centralia man was arrested for possession of methadone and unspecified prescription pills following a traffic stop on the 500 block of South Rock Street in Centralia yesterday evening. Anthony L. Pender was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Centralia Police Department.

• A 24-year-old Rochester woman was arrested for possession of methamphetamine on Saturday night in Centralia, according to police. Shanna M. Rogers was booked into the Lewis County Jail following her contact with an officer on the 100 block of North Pearl Street, according to Centralia Police Department.

• A 44-year-old Centralia woman was arrested for possession of methamphetamine on Friday morning after contact with an officer at the 1300 block of Bayne Street in Centralia, according to police. Sara M. DeSalvo was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Centralia Police Department.

UNDERAGE DRINKING

• Eight individuals were arrested when deputies broke up a Friday night underage drinking party at a rock pit off Evans Road near Toledo, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Several people took off on foot but others, ages 17 to 20, were issued citations for being minors in possession of alcohol, according to the sheriff’s office.

JEWELRY STORE LOSS ABOUT $40,000

• Some $40,000 in jewelry was stolen from the antique store in Centralia that was burglarized last week, according to Centralia police. A witness who heard the alarm about 3:30 a.m. on Thursday on the 100 block of South Tower Avenue saw two males carrying items out of the shop and putting them in a silver sport utility vehicle, according to Centralia police. A police pursuit on northbound Interstate 5 reached speeds of more than 100 mph and continued north. The license plate of the suspect SUV turned out to have been stolen several blocks away from the jewelry store, according to Sgt. Kurt Reichert.