Lewis County Sirens.com

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By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A Lewis County judge issued an arrest warrant yesterday for the former manger of a Chehalis furniture store, accused of pocketing money from cash sales and concocting phony invoices.

Misti M. Moore was expected to make her first appearance yesterday afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court, as a summons had been issued when a charge of first-degree theft was filed last month.

The summons was sent to her address on Littlerock Road in Olympia, but was returned to the prosecutor’s office, Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meager said.

“We don’t know where she is,” Meager told the judge.

Moore, 45, had quit her job from Furniture World on North Market Boulevard with no explanation shortly before the business’s owner contacted Chehalis police in May of last year, according to court documents.

The owner Emina Jusupovic told an officer the issue came to her attention when a customer came in to ask about getting his furniture repaired and the items on his receipt did not match the entries in the company computer, Meagher wrote in charging documents.

A police detective was shown several instances suggesting similar cash transactions when he met with the new manager in July of last year.

One customer, for example, had a receipt showing he spent $2,000 on couches and love seats, but the store invoice showed a purchase of a table lamp for $43, according to Meagher.

That customer said he got a very good deal after he asked about a cash discount and a veteran’s discount and that one of the items he took home was advertised at $1,600 or $1,700, Meagher wrote.

Charging documents don’t indicate why it took more than a year to investigate and/or file criminal charges.

Meagher wrote in charging documents he currently has documentation of $5,880 missing, but the new manager found as much as $20,000 in discrepancies.

Moore has six prior felony convictions for embezzlement crimes committed in Virginia against another furniture store, according to Meagher.

Judge Nelson Hunt agreed to issue a $5,000 arrest warrant.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The owners of a Winlock warehouse that went up in flames last summer and their insurance company have already forked out more than $200,000 for the contractors who conducted cleanup and demolition, and now the state Department of Ecology has sent a bill for its response.

August 18, 2015

The 15,000 square-foot building held pallets of grocery products, including 1,130 gallons of vegetable oils. Runoff from the fire’s extinguishment spilled into the nearby Olequa Creek, killing as many as 100,000 fish over a stretch of three and a half miles.

Ecology and other agencies oversaw the response for more than two weeks after the August 18 fire. After any oil spill response, Ecology is required by state law to follow up with enforcement, including reimbursement for state expenses, the state agency said in a news release.

DOE has directed Olympic Trading Company to reimburse the state for its costs of $30,887.

The work at Northwest Kerron Street, just south of Laurel Street, included the collection and removal of  65,500 gallons of contaminated water and 25 cubic yards of oiled sorbents and contaminated soil, according to DOE.

The owners are Patricia and Michael Parish, who reside in the Winlock area, Fire Investigator Samuel Patrick said at the time.

Investigators have not found a cause for the fire.

Early on, officials reported finding all species and sizes of fish, insects and other living organisms were killed for five miles downstream, but revised the distance. DOE indicates some endangered species perished. Olequa Creek is a tributary to the Cowlitz River.

The state agency also issued Olympic Trading Company a $1,000 fine. The company has 30 days to appeal the penalty and cost reimbursement.

In its news release, DOE noted  the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering a separate assessment for the value of damages to the environment.
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For background, read “Authorities: Stay out of Winlock creek, avoid contaminated runoff from warehouse fire” from Friday August 21, 2015, here

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Mossyrock city clerk now stands accused not only of stealing roughly $7,700 from the city, but of making large monthly withdrawals – from roughly $2,200 to as much as $4,833 – from the municipality’s accounts going back to October.

Doneia A. Santiago

Doneia A. Santiago, 53, pleaded not guilty to first-degree theft earlier this month, but already the mayor the police chief and prosecutors were digging up new information by looking into transactions at Key Bank, where the city did business until moving to Security State Bank.

Santiago was arrested on June 26 and was released on a $10,000 unsecured bond.

The alleged thefts came to light when Santiago approached the mayor to tell him her husband inadvertently used the city credit card to make an approximately $3,600 payment to Central Mortgage, according to court documents.

The initial charges also made mention of ATM withdrawals the mayor said were not authorized and use of Mossyrock’s bank card to purchase fuel.

In a supplemental affidavit filed in Lewis County Superior Court, prosecutors write that on the day Santiago was charged, Morton Police Chief Roger Morningstar was notified Santiago had issued herself a payroll check on June 20, which was not a regular payroll date.

Morningstar advised the mayor to look over the Key Bank accounts, where they found a number of transactions made to Central Mortgage, Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Paul Masiello wrote.

The total comes to more than $37,000.

Information from the Lewis County Assessors Office shows Santiago co-owns nearly 10 acres and a three-bedroom house outside of Mossyrock assessed at more than $258,000.

The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office filed the supplemental affidavit and an amended information on July 8.

The charge of first-degree theft was left out, but in its place are nine charges of second-degree theft and nine charges of  first-degree identity theft.

Santiago has retained Centralia attorney Don Blair. Her next court hearing is scheduled for Aug. 4.
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For background, read “Thousands of dollars in unauthorized transactions attributed to Mossy city clerk” from Monday June 27, 2016, here