Archive for April, 2014

Firefighter Gebhart to take the lead in Chehalis, for now

Friday, April 25th, 2014

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS –  Capt. Rob Gebhart will be the interim fire chief in Chehalis while the city searches for someone to fill the top post with the departure of Chief Jim Walkowski.

Chehalis City Manager Merlin MacReynold appointed Gebhart this morning.

Walkowki, longtime head of Riverside Fire Authority in Centralia has been halftime chief at the Chehalis Fire Department. He’s taken a new job in Spokane County that begins May 1.

Chehalis Fire Capt. Casey Beck said he was among those who recommended the move when MacReynold sat down this morning with the captains and Walkowski to discuss the department and its future.

“Merlin leaned right over, shook Rob’s hand and said, you got it, you start Monday,” Beck said.

Gebhart, a Chehalis firefighter for 27 years, has led the department before. He served as acting chief for about a year and a half beginning in early 2007 when Chief Bill Nacht retired. Gebhart was assistant chief below Nacht. He first became a captain in 1996.

MacReynold said the city is just starting the process to hire a permanent chief. It could take three to six months, he said.

The move comes because of Walkowski’s unexpected departure. Riverside is cutting personnel and top officers, due to sudden large decreases in revenue primarily from the reduced contribution of taxes from TransAlta’s power plant, as it winds down operations.

The Chehalis Fire Department and Riverside Fire Authority had been working more closely together, moving toward a functional consolidation. The changes won’t necessarily prevent that, according to McReynold.

“Everybody’s committed to moving forward, but obviously at a slower pace,” he said.

Gebhart, 49, said he likes the idea of filling the interim position internally, because it’s for such a short time period.

“I’m very glad Merlin made that decision,” Gebhart said. “Not specifically for me, but for the department.”

News brief: Four years later: Vigil set in Chehalis park for missing Kayla Croft-Payne

Friday, April 25th, 2014

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The family of the missing Kayla Croft-Payne will host a gathering tomorrow in Chehalis to mark the four year anniversary of the disappearance of the then 18-year-old Lewis County girl.

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Kayla Croft-Payne

The vigil will be held from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Penny Playground in Recreation Park in Chehalis.

A press conference is scheduled as well, conducted by Michelle Bart, with a Vancouver, Wash.-based group called National Women’s Coalition Against Violence & Exploitation.

Croft-Payne’s family encourages the young woman’s friends, associates and members of the public to join them.

Croft-Payne was living in a trailer between Chehalis and Napavine on April 28, 2010 when she last logged onto her MySpace internet account. She was reported missing on May 5 by a friend who hadn’t seen or heard from her for several days.

Last year at this time, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office began looking into information Croft-Payne shared with others about getting her photos taken by someone she met online, as she wanted to become a model.

What: Vigil for Kayla Croft-Payne
Where: Recreation Park, Penny Playground in Chehalis, 221 SW 13th St.
When: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. Saturday April 26, 2014

•••

For background, read :

• “Sheriff’s office digs around Winlock property in connection with missing girl case” from Friday May 10, 2013, here

• “Kayla Croft-Payne: Family of missing girl questions link to modeling website” from Monday April 29, 2013, here

• “Kayla Croft-Payne: Missing Lewis County teen’s parents still seeking answers” from Friday March 25, 2011, here

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Friday, April 25th, 2014

BOLD CAR PROWLER

• A 50-year-old woman who left her car unlocked when she went inside the Onalaska Post Office to retrieve her mail yesterday afternoon returned to discover her purse was missing. A deputy responding to the approximately 4 p.m. incident noted that  among the items she lost were debit and credit cards, gift cards, her driver’s license and $7 in cash, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

MISSING BIKE

• Centralia police yesterday took a report of black and silver bicycle stolen from the 100 block of South Silver Street.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for shoplifting, drug arrests for which information is not readily available; responses for alarms, disputes, collisions on city streets, someone backing into a vehicle in a parking lot … and more.

Decades old child sex crime case for Ricky Riffe on calendar for next week

Thursday, April 24th, 2014
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Ricky Riffe, prisoner in red, waits as a clerk gets his lawyer on the telephone for a trial confirmation hearing in Lewis County Superior Court.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Prosecutors have offered a deal to convicted murderer and former Mossyrock resident Ricky Riffe if he pleads guilty to charges he raped and molested his 9-year-old step-daughter in the mid-1980s.

Riffe, 55, is already serving a sentence of nearly 103 years, following his conviction last fall in the 1985 kidnapping, robbery and shotgun deaths of Ed and Minnie Maurin, an elderly Ethel couple.

He was arrested in mid-2012 in the old case, and extradited from his longtime home in King Salmon, Alaska back to Lewis County where he was found guilty after a six-week trial.  Early last year, while he was in the jail awaiting trial, prosecutors filed charges accusing him of sex crimes, saying new information came to light during the Maurin investigation.

Riffe appeared in Lewis County Superior Court this afternoon, where lawyers were expected to confirm if they are prepared for the trial which is scheduled for next week.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer told the judge there had been an offer made by his office, but he understood Riffe’s attorney hadn’t yet conveyed it to or discussed it with his client.

Meyer didn’t disclose what the deal consisted of.

Seattle-based defense attorney John Crowley couldn’t attend the hearing, but represented his client via speakerphone.

Crowley began to explain he was involved in two trials in Eastern Washington, and while he was there, meant to visit Riffe in prison to discuss the offer. But then he learned Riffe had already been put on a bus back to Lewis County, he said.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt was stern, cutting the lawyer off before he could request a postponement.

“We’ve gone out of our way to preserve dates for you,” Hunt said.

Hunt told him he expects either the trial to begin on time next week, or if a plea deal is reached, then a plea must made before that date.

Riffe has denied any sexual contact with the girl, according to charging documents.

Meyer said the trial is set to begin next Thursday and could last five days.

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Ricky Riffe is back in Lewis County Superior Court for another trial, accused of child molestation from the 1980s.

•••

For background, read “Battle continues between Ricky Riffe, Lewis County prosecutors” from Friday January 3, 2014, here

And, “Attorneys dispute statute of limitations rules on surprise child sex charge for Maurin double murder defendant” from Saturday February 23, 2013, here

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Thursday, April 24th, 2014

DOG FISHED FROM DEPTHS OF WATERY HOLE

• Firefighters in Chehalis rescued a dog yesterday that stumbled into a deep culvert, partially filled with water on former farmland. Police, firefighters and the city animal control officer were called just before 10 a.m. to the area west of Interstate 5 and north of the car dealership on Northwest Louisiana Avenue. Police said a man maybe in his 60s was walking his dog when it took off into the brush and trees and dropped into a hole, probably part of an abandoned irrigation pumping system. “There was water, I don’t know how deep the water was,” Community Services Officer Angie Elder said. The medium-sized shepherd mix could be seen paddling about 10 feet down, she said. A ladder was lowered into the opening – which was less than three feet wide – and it disappeared below the surface, she said.  One firefighter was able to lean down into the hole while another held onto him, and lasso the canine with a catch pole, she said. After he was pulled up, he seemed fine, other than being cold and wet and having a small cut near his eye, she said. “When he popped out, he was up and ready to go, he ran back to the pickup truck,” she said.

THEFT

• At least two boxes of rifle ammunition were missing from a garage on the 1800 block of Taylor Street in Centralia following a burglary which was reported to police around 5 p.m. yesterday.

• Centralia police took a report about 9 a.m. yesterday from the 1400 block of Harrison Avenue regarding cash stolen from a parked vehicle.

FRAUD

• Another case of someone using someone else’s social security number to file a tax return was reported to Centralia police yesterday, from an individual at the 1400 block of Joyce Lane.

• An individual called police from the 2800 block of Russell Road in Centralia around 2 p.m. yesterday regarding fraudulent charges discovered on her debit card.

DRUGS

• A 29-year-old Pe Ell resident was arrested last night for possession of methamphetamine and third-degree theft following contact with an officer at the 500 block of South Tower Avenue in Centralia. Steele E. Gove was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, shoplifting, misdemeanor assault; responses for alarms, disputes, collisions on city streets, hit and run … and more.

Morton teen pleads not guilty to assaulting mother with knife

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The 15-year-old Morton boy arrested last week after allegedly stabbing his mother will remain locked up as his case proceeds, a judge ordered yesterday.

The teen was taken to the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center in Chehalis following the incident at the family home on April 14.

He appeared before a judge yesterday morning for his arraignment, in the same building in Lewis County Juvenile Court. He is charged with second-degree assault.

His only words spoken during the short hearing were “Yes, your honor” and “not guilty”.

The boy is represented by Centralia attorney David Brown. Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Kevin Nelson is handling the case.

According to charging documents, the teen and his mother argued when he wanted to walk his girlfriend home from school, he overheard his mother laughing about him and he told police he’d had enough.

The documents describe wounds on the mother’s arm, leg and chest, as well as a knife about 14 inches long.

Rhiannon Foister, 35, was released from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle last Wednesday and is home recovering, Morton Police Department Police Chief Dan Mortensen indicated earlier this week.

Brown said the next steps for him are investigating the case.

The offense carries a possible penalty of 15 to 36 weeks of incarceration, Brown said.

A fact finding hearing, similar to a trial, Brown said, is scheduled for May 20.

•••

For background, read “Morton mother recovering from stabbing, teen son remains locked up” from Thursday April 17, 2014, here

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014

Updated at 6:41 p.m.

BANK ACCOUNT ACCESSED, AFTER TEXT

• A 55-year-old Chehalis woman who responded to a text message purportedly from her credit union found herself a theft victim, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Department spokesperson Linda Bailey said the woman had previously received a text message from WSECU telling her of a problem with her account and that she needed to call right away. She called and gave them all her banking information, Bailey said. She contacted police yesterday to report approximately $2,000 was stolen from her account, Bailey said. An officer took a report and gave her a case number so she could complete her paperwork for the bank, Bailey said.

MISSING PICKUP TRUCK

• A deputy took a report yesterday morning of a brown 1990 Chevrolet pick truck stolen from the 2100 block of Taylor Street in Centralia. The 24-year-old owner said when he woke up about 7 a.m., the vehicle was gone, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The four-wheel drive truck valued at about $3,000 was taken sometime after 8 p.m. the night before, according to the sheriff’s office. Its license plate is B62616V, Chief Criminal Deputy Stacy Brown said.

OTHER THEFT: GUNS

• Several firearms were among the items stolen from a storage unit at the 800 block of North Tower Avenue, according to a report made to Centralia police yesterday.

OTHER THEFT: TOOLS

• A deputy took a report yesterday from the 300 block of Brown Road East regarding about $850 worth of power tools that went missing between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. last Friday. The victim suspects an individual that he knows and the case is under investigation, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• Centralia police took a report from the 1200 block of Marion Street about 9:25 a.m. yesterday of a toolbox stolen out of a carport.

OTHER THEFT: MAIL

• Chehalis police took a report on Monday morning from the 100 block of Northeast Hillside Drive that mail was stolen from a mailbox. The victim found its door open and the inner locking door open as well, and no mail, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

ARREST FOR SEX CRIME

• A former Chehalis resident picked up by police in Seattle yesterday was ordered held on $50,000 bail following information revealed last month by his now-5-year-old son he was raped while the family lived at the Chehalis Avenue Apartments about two years ago. Norman P. Gastfield was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail, charged in Lewis County Superior Court today with rape of a child in the first degree. Charging documents indicate the child’s mother contacted police on March 12, the same day the boy told her of something had happened in the past. A forensic interview was then conducted, during which the boy said his dad also let him watch “corn” and there were naked girls, as well as threatened to kill his mother if he told, charging documents state. Charging documents allege the incident occurred sometime between Jan. 1, 2012 and April 1, 2013. The family has since moved away and are separated or divorced, according to authorities. Gastfield had an address in Port Angeles, although police said he was most recently living as a transient in Seattle. His arraignment is scheduled for May 1, where he will be represented by court appointed attorney David Arcuri.

VANDALISM

• Police were called about 7:30 p.m. yesterday regarding a razor found stuck in a tire as it was getting repaired from a Ford Explorer which had been parked at the 700 block of Northwest St. Helens Avenue in Chehalis.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license; responses for shoplifting, semi truck into a ditch … and more.