Archive for May, 2018

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Thursday, May 31st, 2018
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Updated

KIDNAP ARREST

• A 29-year-old Centralia man was arrested for kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment after police were called about 7:50 a.m. yesterday to the 1300 block of Lum Road.  Wellington M. Waggener was booked into Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department

VANDALISM WITH GUN

• A deputy was called about 8:30 a.m. yesterday to take a report from a Glenoma man that while his road grader was parked at the 1800 block of North Fork Road, someone had shot it up, leaving several bullet holes throughout the $23,000 piece of equipment.

THEFT

• A Doty resident returned home after being gone for about an hour to find his front door open and his toolbox rummaged through yesterday. A deputy responding to the 8:30 a.m. call to the 100 block of Doty Street noted that approximately $50 worth of Craftsman tools were missing, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• Centralia police were called just after noon yesterday to the 1300 block of Alexander Street where $600 was reported stolen from a resident’s room some time over the previous several days. The case is still under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• A business on the 10 block of Southwest Chehalis Avenue called police about 10:50 a.m. yesterday to report a client who had been fitted with an electronic home monitoring device had disappeared, with their device.

ATTEMPTED BURGLARY

• An employee of a business at the 1300 block of Lum Road in Centralia found pry marks on the back door which appeared to be from somebody try to break into the building, according to a report made to police about 9:30 a.m. yesterday.

DRUGS

• A 34-year-old man being booked into the Lewis County Jail was arrested for a violation of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act about 12:30 p.m. yesterday following the discovery of a plastic bag containing a prescription medication called Suboxone, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Von A. Chase was subsequently booked for the new alleged offense. Prosecutors declined to file the felony charge today.

ON THE ROAD, OFF THE ROAD

• A 31-year-old woman contacted by a law enforcement officer – because her driver’s license was suspended – in the parking lot of the Lewis County Law and Justice Center in Chehalis reportedly responded with some profanity and drove off yesterday. The sheriff’s sergeant had just gotten a tip that Breanna S. Madison was going to get in her car and leave, ran up to her and he suggested she shouldn’t drive, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Madison allegedly headed west on Main Street and then north on Interstate 5, traveling between 40 to 50 mph while a deputy followed, with lights and sirens activated, according to the sheriff’s office. When she stopped near milepost 80 in Centralia, the Freeland resident was informed her driver’s license was suspended and she was arrested for felony attempt to elude, before getting booked into the Lewis County Jail, Chief Deputy Bruce Kimsey said. Prosecutors declined to file the felony charge today.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for driving with suspended license, protection order violation, fourth-degree domestic assault, third-degree malicious mischief; responses for alarm, dispute, harassment, civil issue, hit and run, vandalism, misdemeanor theft, misdemeanor assault, disorderly person, suspicious circumstances … and more among 148 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

Prosecutor: Fatal shot near base of Winlock victim’s skull

Wednesday, May 30th, 2018
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Sheriff Rob Snaza, left, stands between murder suspect Randolph T. Graham, in red, and the audience members in a packed courtroom today

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The 44-year-old Winlock man allegedly gunned down in his own driveway by a neighbor while playing basketball with his teenage son was shot once in the chest, shot twice in the back and shot once near the base of his skull, according to authorities.

Randall J. Lester, 44, of Winlock, was dead at the scene when responders arrived following an approximately 8:12 p.m. 911 call last Wednesday to his residence on the 400 block of Meier Road.

The neighbor, 58-year-old Randolph T. Graham, was charged today in Lewis County Superior Court with first-degree murder and other offenses.

Graham was taken into custody hours after the events, but not booked into the Lewis County Jail until yesterday. Lewis County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said the suspect was hospitalized during that period for a medical issue not related to the incident or his detainment.

“He was under our watch but had to get medically cleared,” Breen said today.

When Graham was brought before a judge this afternoon in Chehalis, several law enforcement officers were present in the packed courtroom. A half dozen persons were left standing. The four rows of benches were occupied by supporters of both the victim and the suspect, according to Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza.

Snaza said the extra security was because there were a lot of high emotions on both sides.

Prosecutors asked he be held in lieu of $5 million bail and Judge James Lawler agreed.

Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Paul Masiello told the judge the large amount was requested because of the egregious facts presented and also concerns of the likelihood of Graham intimidating witnesses, since the two lived next to each other.

Lester’s wife was home when the shooting occurred, as was the 15-year-old son who ran to safety, according to authorities.

The initial information from the sheriff’s office was that Graham pulled into Lester’s driveway, brandished a firearm and fired multiple rounds.

Neither law enforcement nor the prosecutor have put forth any motive, although the investigation revealed there was an ongoing dispute between the two men, according to court papers.

Sheriff’s office spokesperson Breen said this afternoon detectives are still looking into everything. Breen said he was not 100 percent clear yet whether any words were or were not exchanged between the two men at the time of the shooting.

How many shots were fired was not stated in the affidavit regarding probable cause filed today.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer wrote in the affidavit the victim was struck once in the chest and it appeared the bullet exited his body. According to Meyer, the victim was shot two additional times in his back and he was shot near the back of his upper neck from behind.

“A forensic exam was concluded and, preliminarily, it appears the victim was alive when he was shot near the base of his skull, and would have been a fatal shot,” Meyer wrote.

The weapon is identified as a handgun.

Meyer writes the investigation suggests Graham fired rounds from inside his truck after he arrived toward Lester, the son and the home, and may have gotten out of the truck to fire more shots.

The initial information revealed the 15-year-old boy was outside in front of his own house when Graham drove by and traveled a short distance to his own house, according to Meyer.

A short time later, Lester and his son began playing basketball in their driveway.

Soon after, a neighbor reported hearing gunshots, a pause and then more gun shots, according to Meyer.

The teen began running toward the back of his house when the gunfire began and the house was struck multiple times, according to Meyer.

“Holes in the residence created by the bullets from the defendant’s gun appear to follow the general path taken by the minor victim as he was fleeing the area,” Meyer wrote.

Graham was charged also with first-degree assault, based on the fact the boy was present when the shooting began, according to Meyer. He was also charged with drive-by shooting as two shell casings were found inside his vehicle.

Afterward, Graham returned to his home where he refused to surrender to police; a SWAT team responded to apprehend him, according to authorities.

Centralia defense attorney David Arcuri was appointed to present Graham.

Arcuri said because of attorney and client privilege, he could not comment on the question of an ongoing dispute.

“We have a lot of work to do,” Arcuri said after the brief bail hearing.

Prosecutor Meyer stated in court papers that the defendant’s past conduct has been intimidating to the victim, his family and others including the PUD.

Graham’s Facebook page suggests he has kept the victim and the victim’s residence under surveillance and on one occasion entered the victim’s property without permission, according to Meyer.

His arraignment was scheduled for June 14.
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For background, read: “Name of Winlock father allegedly shot dead by neighbor is released” from Tuesday May 29, 2018, here

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Wednesday, May 30th, 2018
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Updated

PERSON LIVING INSIDE STOLEN TRUCK ARRESTED

• A call about a possibly intoxicated person who had been seen walking up and down a road and at times laying in a ditch kicking his legs in the air led deputies to a stolen pickup truck with a camper the man had been using as sleeping quarters, parked in an abandoned barn on the 200 block of Fuller Road in Salkum yesterday evening. A deputy responding just after 6 p.m. located the man in the truck, a white 1969 Chevrolet pickup with no license plates, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.  Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Bruce Kimsey said the property was the site of a structure fire a few years back. The subject who identified himself as Jose Rivera Rivera, 54, of Yakima, was booked into the Lewis County Jail for possession of stolen property and obstructing a law enforcement officer, Kimsey said. His identity has not been verified, according to the sheriff’s office.

TOOLS RECOVERED FROM BREAK-IN

• Two individuals were arrested yesterday in connection with a break-in a week earlier to a shop building at the 700 block of Avery Road West. Two chainsaws and a brand new winch had been taken and someone had cut the back panel out of a safe and stole about $900 cash, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. On Tuesday, a deputy discovered a tenant at the victim’s residence at the time of the incident had pawned a chainsaw at Twin Cities Trading Post, according to the sheriff’s office. Following an investigation, Brandon M Lee, 18, Chehalis, and Dustin L Fournier, 22, Centralia, were arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree theft and third-degree malicious mischief, according to Chief Deputy Bruce Kimsey. Lee was additionally booked for trafficking in stolen property, according to Kimsey. The tools were recovered.

DOMESTIC ASSAULT

• A 26-year-old Centralia man who allegedly struck an individual in the face during an argument yesterday at the 500 block of South King Street in Centralia was subsequently arrested after a 3:54 p.m. call for fourth-degree domestic assault, obstructing a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest. Tanner ZR Russell booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, trespassing, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license; responses for alarm, dispute, civil issue, vehicle collision, misdemeanor theft, disorderly person, suspicious circumstances … and more among 156 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

News brief: Vader residential fire under investigation

Wednesday, May 30th, 2018
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One-hundred block Wildwood Road / Courtesy photo by Derrick Paul

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – One person was transported to an emergency room for smoke inhalation after a house fire yesterday afternoon west of Vader.

Four cats perished and the two-story home was a total loss, according to Fire Investigator Derrick Paul..

Paul was summoned yesterday evening to look into the cause of the blaze.

A male and a female were on site at the time of the fire, around 2 p.m., on the 100 block of Wildwood Road, according to Paul. The female suffered smoke inhalation.

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Tuesday, May 29th, 2018
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Updated

LEVEE TARGETED WITH EXPLOSIVE DEVICE

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning that a pipe bomb was found atop a levee behind a residence on the 1200 block of Long Road in Centralia on Saturday. The Washington State Patrol bomb squad was summoned and rendered the 8-inch device safe just before 3 p.m., according to the sheriff’s office. There is no suspect information, Chief Deputy Bruce Kimsey said.

ASSAULT REPORTED

• Chehalis police were called to the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center on the 1200 block of Southwest Pacific Avenue about 9:15 p.m. on Sunday to take a report of an assault. Further details were not available.

THEFT, THEFT, THEFT

• A 26-year-old Centralia man was arrested after a search at his residence on Friday afternoon turned up eight Toyo mud tires reported missing a week earlier from an acquaintance’s property in the 100 block of Mountain View Lane in Ethel. Deputies went to the home of Zachary Meikle at the 300 block of North Street in Centralia with a search warrant and booked Meikle into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree possession of stolen property and an outstanding warrant, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The recovered property was valued at $4,600, according to the sheriff’s office.

• A deputy was called to the 2300 block of Wildwood Road on Friday afternoon following the discovery by a woman that sometime since November 7, someone stole her John Deere model 8100 tractor and irrigation pumps. The loss is estimated at $139,000, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

• Officers arrested Kenneth D. Goble, a 36-year-old homeless person, for an alleged burglary near the 100 block of Aberdeen Road in Morton on Friday morning. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail without incident, according to the Morton Police Department.

• Chehalis police were called to the 600 block of Southwest William Avenue about 2:35 p.m. on Monday following the discovery via security footage that about four and half hours after a package was delivered on Sunday, someone came onto the porch and stole it. The missing parcel contained ladies shoes, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

• Chehalis police were called to the 10 block of Southwest Fifth Street on Friday evening to investigate the theft of a potted Japanese maple tree from a front yard of a residence. The value is approximately $80, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

• A business in the 1300 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue in Chehalis reported on Friday they had two customers who failed to return property they were leasing, according to the Chehalis Police Department. The cases are under investigation.

• Morton police responded to the 100 block of Seventh Street in Morton following a 2:23 p.m. call on Wednesday to take a report of guns getting stolen. The owner was unaware of when the possible theft took place and had very little information on the firearms, according to the Morton Police Department. The case is pending further information, according to police.

ON THE ROAD, OFF THE ROAD

• A 50-year-old motorist who allegedly fled a deputy outside the Packwood Flea Market on Saturday afternoon, driving through a ditch and weaving between parked cars and pedestrians was finally contacted in a parking lot and arrested on Saturday afternoon. A deputy had seen he was not wearing a seatbelt and waved him over, but he took off, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Ty L. Groshong, of Auburn, smelled strongly of intoxicants, according to the sheriff’s office. A search incident to his arrest turned up several containers of prescription pills, which were not “prescribed containers,” Chief Deputy Bruce Kimsey said. Groshong was booked into the Lewis County Jail for attempting to elude and possession of a controlled substance without prescription; a case for driving under the influence will be referred to prosecutors, according to Kimsey.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, trespassing, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license, fourth-degree domestic assault; responses for alarm, dispute, civil issue, suspicious circumstances … and more among 127 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.

Name of Winlock father allegedly shot dead by neighbor is released

Tuesday, May 29th, 2018

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Lewis County Coroner’s Office revealed the identity of the father who was shot dead while playing basketball with his son in their driveway last week in Winlock.

Randall J. Lester, 44, of Winlock, was dead at the scene, following an approximately 8:12 p.m. call on Wednesday to the 400 block of Meier Road. His neighbor was arrested for first-degree murder.

Coroner Warren McLeod this morning indicated an autopsy showed Lester’s cause of death was penetrating gunshot wounds to the head and torso. The death is a homicide, according to McLeod.

Deputies were told in the 911 call that 58-year-old Randolph T. Graham pulled into Lester’s driveway, brandished a firearm and fired multiple rounds. The son was able to run to safety.

After several hours of attempted negotiations, Lewis County Regional SWAT entered Graham’s residence and take him into custody.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office has been investigating. They have not released a motive.
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For background, read: “Sheriff’s Office: Winlock father fatally shot in driveway by neighbor” from Thursday May 24, 2018, here

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Monday, May 28th, 2018
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SMALL HOUSE FIRE

• Firefighters called about 4:15 p.m. on Sunday to the 400 block of Downing Road in Centralia found smoke showing from underneath a house and from the attic vents. “Crews were able to gain access to the fire which had spread into the wall and floor joists, preventing it from extending into the rest of the residence,” Riverside Fire Authority Capt. Casey McCarthy stated in a brief summary of the incident. The roadway was closed for approximately one hour, according to McCarthy. Nobody was injured. Damage was estimated at $10,000. McCarthy indicated they learned the occupant earlier in the day had used a propane-fueled weed torch around the home and smoldering debris eventually had extended under the house.

PHYSICAL VIOLENCE

• Officers responding to the report of a physical dispute between multiple parties outside a tavern at the 100 block of South Tower Avenue just before 2 a.m. on Sunday found that all participants had fled, except for one male who was unconscious on the ground. The case is under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Centralia police were called just after 7 p.m. on Sunday to the 600 block of West Main Street where a 49-year-old man reported a man in his 40s attacked him without provocation. The incident is being investigated as fourth-degree assault, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Officers called to the 2600 block of Cooks Hill Road in Centralia about 4:25 p.m. on Saturday arrested a 26-year-old Olympia resident for felony harassment and fourth-degree assault. Adrian Garcia was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

THEFT

• An expensive pair of tennis shoes were reported stolen off of the front porch of a residence at the 200 block of West Summa Street in Centralia at about 9:20 p.m. on Sunday.

DRUGS

• A 30-year-old homeless woman picked up on an outstanding warrant just before 11 a.m. on Saturday at the 400 block of West Main Street in Centralia was found to be in possession of methamphetamine, according to the Centralia Police Department. Brittney N. Burgard  was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.

VANDALISM

• Centralia police were called about an apartment complex tagged with gang-style graffiti at the 700 block of West First Street at about 5:45 p.m. on Saturday.

AND MORE

• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, harassment, third-degree theft, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license, third-degree domestic malicious mischief; responses for alarm, dispute, hit and run, civil issue, vehicle collision, suspicious circumstances, protection order violation … and more among 403 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 48-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.