Archive for July, 2011

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Monday, July 25th, 2011

POLICE: DRUNKEN MAN FACES OFF WITH OFFICERS IN CENTRALIA

• A 25-year-old man who taunted police with “Shoot me m***** f*****” was arrested at gunpoint for multiple offenses in Centralia on Saturday night, according to authorities. It began with a call about 8:15 p.m. from the 600 block of Shanklin Road in Onalaska where a deputy was told Luis M. Tapia, of Elma, was really drunk and had taken a motor vehicle without permission, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Law enforcement officers got information Tapia was in Centralia and police conducted a traffic stop at Woodland and Hunt streets about 9 p.m. Tapia was “throwing” what appeared to be gang signs, telling police to shoot him and ignoring commands to keep his hands up and get on the ground, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. A Centralia police officer used a Taser on him but was still unable to get him to listen to their instructions, according to Brown. Officers eventually subdued Tapia with physical force, according to the Centralia police. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail for driving under the influence, resisting arrest, taking a motor vehicle without permission, third-degree assault and driving with a suspended license, according to Brown. A Centralia officer sustained a hand injury during the arrest, police reported.

ASSAULT

• Police were called about 7:15 p.m. yesterday to West First and M streets in Centralia where they were told a male was assaulted by the driver of a vehicle after yelling at the driver to slow down through the neighborhood.

• Chehalis police called to a report of several individuals fighting in the street just after 2 a.m. on Sunday near Northwest Chehalis Avenue and Park Street arrested four people. Three men and a woman, all in their 20s and from Centralia and Chehalis, were arrested for disorderly conduct, and then released, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

• A 17-year-old Centralia girl arrested for fourth-degree assault yesterday afternoon was arrested for a second offense after she reportedly kicked out the rear window of a police car. Officers called to a family disturbance on the 400 block of South Buckner Street at about 3:20 p.m. also arrested a 20-year-old Centralia woman for obstruction and resisting arrest, according to the Centralia Police Department.

THEFT

• A Smith and Wesson revolver was among the items stolen in a burglary yesterday morning n the Onalaska area. The sheriff’s office called to the 600 block of Shanklin Road learned someone broke in between 9 a.m. and 10:15 a.m., stealing an HD television, a laptop computer, a chainsaw, a DV player, DVD movies, a drill set and a fishing pole, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• A pair of Chehalis residents were arrested after a vehicle prowl Friday morning near the 800 block of Hillburger Road in which a debit card was stolen and used later in the day at a truck stop in Napavine and a store in Onalaska. The victim parked her vehicle while she went for  a walk in the Rails to Trails area and returned to find a window shattered and her wallet missing, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. A deputy made a traffic stop later along Spencer Road and the missing wallet was laying in plain view, according to the sheriff’s office. David J. Eslick, 24, and Rainy N. Hepburn, 29, both of Chehalis, were arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree theft, Chief Criminal Deputy Stacy Brown said.

• Chehalis police were called about 5:15 p.m. yesterday to a vehicle prowl on the 800 block of South Market Boulevard. Medication and a medical card were taken from the unlocked vehicle, according to police.

• Morton police reported today someone entered a vacant residence on the 200 block of Davis Lake Road and stripped it of its wiring. A report was taken last Tuesday morning of the burglary, according to police.

• Someone broke into the wood shop at Morton High School and stole a chainsaw, according to Morton police. The break-in was reported last Tuesday morning. The loss is estimated at $350.

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning on a string of thefts from boats moored at the Lake Mayfield Resort. A deputy took a report on July 16 from the resort on the 300 block of Hadaller Road from a man who said his fishing pole was stolen from his boat overnight, according to the sheriff’s office. Later in the day, three other victims reported five missing fishing poles and four wake boards, according to Chief Criminal Deputy Stacy Brown

DRUGS

• A 20-year-old male was arrested for a warrant and possession of illegal narcotics early this morning after contact with police on the 900 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia. Adam J. Pluard, of Olympia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

WRECKS

• Two Napavine women were injured in a two-car crash on Saturday afternoon at the 1100 block of North Military Road in Winlock, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. A male driver, whose information was not available, was cited for second-degree negligent driving following the rear-end collision, Chief Criminal Deputy Stacy Brown said. The victims are 23 years old and 18 years old and were taken to Providence Centralia Hospital.

• A 42-year-old Packwood woman was hospitalized after she was found laying on the road with broken ribs and other injuries following a motorcycle wreck on the 600 block of Cannon Road in Packwood on Saturday night . A deputy arriving about 9:15 p.m. reported the woman said an animal ran in front of her causing her to crash. She was taken to Morton General Hospital, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies suspect she had been drinking, according to  Chief Criminal Deputy Stacy Brown.

News brief: Ammo, half dozen guns stolen in Mossyrock break-ins

Monday, July 25th, 2011

This news story was updated at 11:42 a.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Police are on the lookout for two suspects after six firearms and hundreds, if not thousands, of rounds of ammunition were stolen from a Mossyrock house over the weekend, according to Interim Police Chief Jeremy Stamper.

The residence in the 200 block of Court Street was burglarized at least five times over the weekend; money, a vehicle and other items were stolen as well, according to the Mossyrock Police Department.

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Anthony S. Depuisaye-Greene

Arrest warrants have been issued for two 18-year-olds, Anthony S. Depuisaye-Greene, of Mossyrock, and his girlfriend Dezarai B. Johnson, of Sequim, according to police.

They are considered armed and dangerous, police said.

The pair are also wanted in connection with a burglary discovered Sunday afternoon in which $3,000 of jewelry was taken from the 300 block of East State Street in Mossyrock.

Officer Rebecca Sutherland said the pistols were all loaded and were taken from a secured gun room; the intruders removed the door from its hinges. The victim was away on vacation, she said.

Police believe the home was first broken into on Friday, based on statements from neighbors and a 17-year-old female who was arrested in Mossyrock on Sunday in connection with the burglary.

A Jeep across the street was prowled on Friday, Sutherland said.

The stolen vehicle, a 1998 Toyota RAVE, was recovered last night in in the Sequim area of Clallam County along with one of the guns, according to police.

The pair are also suspects in other burglaries and vehicle prowls in the area, according to police.

The police department is asking for the public’s help. Anyone with information on the suspects’ whereabouts is asked to call 911 immediately or, if they wish to remain anonymous, call Lewis County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-748-6422.

Update 2:10 p.m.: Chief Stamper just got word they are in custody in Clallam County. The teenagers were found in a convenience store east of Sequim and arrested without incident, according to the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.

News brief: Three hurt in freeway motorcycle wrecks Sunday

Monday, July 25th, 2011

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Two separate motorcycle accidents on Interstate 5 south of Toledo sent three people to hospitals on Sunday, according to the Washington State Patrol.

An 18-year-old Centralia resident was injured when his 2006 Yamaha hit an animal in the northbound lanes near Castle Rock last night, the state patrol reported.

Dallas A. Daarud was ejected and taken to St. John Medical Center in Longview, according to the patrol

Troopers called about 11:20 p.m. to the scene noted Daarud suffered bruises; his motorcycle was destroyed.

At about 1:25 p.m., troopers were called to a motorcycle crash near milepost 59, the Vader exit, in which two Puyallup residents were hurt.

The passenger, Ruth Coble, 51, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with pelvic and leg injuries as well as abrasions, according to the state patrol.

The driver, Randy Coble, 52, suffered abrasions as well as head and neck injuries; he was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital, the state patrol said.

Their 2005 Harley Davidson was northbound when the rear tire blew out throwing the bike into the concrete barrier, and overturning a trailer it was pulling, according to the patrol.

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

MAN FIGHTS POLICE IN HOSPITAL ER

• Centralia police arrested a man in the emergency room at Providence Centralia Hospital last night they say was belligerent and aggressive as staff were trying to treat his friend. Officers were called about 9:15 p.m. to the hospital on South Schueber Road and handcuffed Nicholas R. Dafoe, 20, who reportedly then fought with officers. Dafoe, of Centralia, was arrested for obstructing a public servant, according to the Centralia Police Department. Police reported the friend had life-threatening symptoms and had been brought to the hospital by another friend.

THEFT

• Somebody stole a 24-inch turquoise-colored metal squash blossom from a business on the 300 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia, according to a report made to police on Thursday.

• Officers took three different reports of flower baskets and flower pots stolen from residences on Thursday.

• Tires were stolen from a vehicle on the 800 block of Centralia College Boulevard in Centralia, according to a report made to police yesterday about noon.

• Centralia police found a stolen vehicle on Thursday afternoon at the 100 block of Benjamin Street.

VANDALISM

• Centralia police took a report yesterday afternoon of graffiti spray painted on a vehicle at the 100 block of Virginia Drive.

News brief: Low-flying military planes part of McChord competition

Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Lewis County residents can expect to see unusual low-flying military aircraft from other countries over the next few days during a training event to be held at McChord Air Force Base.

Some 35 nations are expected to participate in a six-day competition called an air rodeo, according to the U.S. Air Force.

Some of the flight paths are expected to be over Morton, Toledo, Winlock out to the coast and back again to Pierce County.

It is scheduled to run tomorrow through Friday.

Former Chehalis medical clinic owner sentenced for Medicaid fraud

Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The former office manager for a Chehalis medical clinic is serving four months in jail for falsifying Medicaid claims.

Robert L. Miller Jr. 61, was sentenced in Lewis County Superior Court this week following a plea agreement that included Miller repaying some $30,000 in billings to the state, according to court documents.

Miller was part owner of Wooten Primary Care, a clinic that employed two temporary physicians after Dr. David A. Wooten found his license suspended in the spring of 2006.

Miller billed Medicaid using those doctor’s Medicaid numbers after they were no longer working there, and put the money into the corporate account, according to Washington State Assistant Attorney General Aileen Miller.

“We know those doctors didn’t provide the services, because they were not there,” Miller said yesterday.

Robert Miller pleaded guilty in January to first-degree theft and Medicaid false statements. His sentencing was held off until Wednesday, until after he paid restitution which he has done.

Several counts of false statements were dismissed as part of the deal, according to Aileen Miller. The remaining count involved Robert Miller submitting statements to Medicaid falsely saying Wooten sold the practice, according to Aileen Miller.

Wooten Primary Care had some 6,000 patients when the state Department of Health suspended Wooten’s’ license with allegations of substandard care relating to narcotics prescriptions, threatening behavior and romantic relationships with patients.

His license was reinstated with conditions, but in early 2008 the clinic on South Market Boulevard closed.

Robert L. Miller, who is Wooten’s father-in-law, has a 2003 conviction in Michigan for embezzlement, according to the court file.

His lawyer wrote in court documents he has been working as a sales manager for the past year and half in his home state of Indiana.

News brief: Suspected freezer burglar caught in Rochester

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Diana Howard’s security camera paid off as deputies arrested the man yesterday suspected of repeatedly pilfering food from the freezer in her Centralia-area garage.

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Freezer burglar suspect

Four times in the past month, the 63-year-old discovered various items missing and last week set up a surveillance camera at her property on Old Highway 99 near 220th Avenue Southwest.

After it captured images of a man picking through her freezer over the weekend, Howard shared those photos with the news media and the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office yesterday morning received an anonymous email someone who said they recognized the man in the picture, sheriff’s Lt. Greg Elwin said.

Deputies compared the images with a photo of the person and yesterday morning arrested 46-year-old Darrell Normand, of Rochester for residential burglary, Elwin said.

Normand lives about a half mile from Howard’s house, he said.