Posts Tagged ‘news reporter’

Human remains found on TransAlta property belong to Spanaway teen

Thursday, September 25th, 2014

Updated at 2:15 p.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The skeletal remains found earlier this year off Little Hanaford Road outside Centralia have been identified as an 18-year-old Spanaway man reported missing more than two years ago.

A DNA match was confirmed yesterday, using family reference samples of Christopher D. Virdell, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Virdell was reported missing by family members in February 2012 to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, according to the sheriff’s office.

2014.0926.christopher.virdell.crimestoppers

Christopher D. Virdell

Pierce County has had an ongoing investigation into the young man’s disappearance and is now working closely with Lewis County detectives to determine what led to his death, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said in a news release.

Brown declined to speak about Virdell’s cause of death, saying Pierce County is the lead in the investigation.

The partial remains were found the evening of Feb. 28 by a resident in the area out walking his dog. The sheriff’s office said at the time they believed they had been dumped there.

The (Tacoma) News Tribune reports Pierce County detectives believe Virdell was killed and have interviewed more than 100 people in the case but have not released a motive.

According to Crime Stoppers of Tacoma and Pierce County, Virdell was last seen at 10 a.m. on February 9th, 2012, as he left a friend’s residence on 223rd Street East in Spanaway to catch a bus to work. He was reported missing later that night after he failed to show up to work or home.

The property near the 2800 block of Little Hanaford Road is wooded, close to the roadway, and owned by Trans Alta, according to the sheriff’s office.

The remains were sent to King County to be examined by a forensic pathologist who has expertise with skeletal human remains. The identification through DNA was made by the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification and reported to detectives yesterday.

Further dental testing will be conducted, but it is strongly believed the remains are those of Virdell, Brown indicated.

The news prompted a conversation at the sheriff’s office about another unsolved case, the still unidentified remains of a female found near Morton in the spring of 2011.

A motorist who pulled off U.S. Highway 12 to take a break spotted the remains off the side of a logging road on April 7. The sheriff’s office has said they suspect foul play, but they still don’t know who the victim is.

Dental records and DNA have been entered into databases with no matches found. An examination by the specialist at the King County Medical Examiner’s Office could not determine the cause of death.

The woman is believed to have been between 20 and 35 years old when she died, small in stature and possibly of mixed ethnicity.

“We’ve done everything we can,” Brown said. “We’re still hoping someone will step forward to report their loved one missing.”

•••

For background, read “Breaking news: Human remains found on TransAlta property” from Saturday March 1, 2014, here

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Thursday, September 25th, 2014

Updated at 3:21 p.m.

ARSON INVESTIGATION

• Centralia police are investigating an incident last night in which someone tried to start a fire in a downtown building containing numerous upstairs apartment. Officers called about 8 p.m. to the 300 block of North Tower Avenue learned a resident heard a smoke alarm going off but said at first she ignored it because it occurs frequently from people cooking, according to the Centralia Police Department. However, when she finally went into the hallway, she saw a smokey haze and discovered a piece of paper burning inside an open light switch box, Sgt. Carl Buster said. She removed it and put it out, Buster said.

MISSING MEDS

• Centralia police were called about 9:20 a.m. yesterday to a report of the theft of a black bag containing medications from the 200 block of Railroad Avenue.

CAR PROWL

• A backpack containing an HP laptop computer was reported stolen from a vehicle parked at the 1100 block of Woodland Avenue in Centralia yesterday. The victim reported about 10:15 a.m. a window had been smashed out in the vehicle.

VANDALISM

• A 45-year-old Centralia man who left to cool off following a dispute yesterday reportedly then punched a dent into the side of a new truck at Main and Iron streets in Centralia yesterday morning. James C. Weatherford was cited for third-degree malicious mischief and then released, according to the Centralia Police Department. The damage is estimated at $500, police say.

UNRULY PATIENT

• A 48-year-old patient was arrested last night for two counts of third-degree assault after he allegedly took swings at medics who tried to prevent him from getting out of a moving ambulance. Darren L. Fullerton was intoxicated and began unstrapping himself, saying he had to urinate as the vehicle was northbound on Interstate 5 near Mellen Street, according to the Centralia Police Department. They pulled over and officers responded to the approximately 11:40 p.m. call, according to police. He was being taken to Providence Centralia Hospital after he was found sleeping on the ground at the entrance to the Airport Depot in Chehalis, police said. Fullerton was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Centralia police.

MORE SEX CRIME ALLEGATIONS

• The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reports the 22-year-old man arrested on Tuesday for an alleged sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl is now facing potential charges involving a second 15-year-old. Michael A. Ryan Jr. was booked into jail for three counts of third-degree rape of a child for instances occurring between August and December of last year, the sheriff’s office reported yesterday. This morning, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said detectives are referring information on the new case to prosecutors for evaluation of charges of two more counts of the same offense, occurring between August and October. The second girl also considered it a dating relationship, Brown said.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, obstructing, misdemeanor assault; responses for alarm, shoplifting, suspicious circumstances, report of child molestation that turned out to be unfounded … and more.

Police: Morton woman punches neighbor, steals toys

Wednesday, September 24th, 2014

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 48-year-old Morton woman was arrested for robbery after a confrontation when she was caught allegedly stealing toys from a neighbor’s front yard, but not before a low-speed pursuit involving three law enforcement agencies that ended with her car in a ditch.

Deputies called about 9:50 a.m. to the 700 block of Davis Lake Road were told Julie A. Erickson pulled into her neighbor’s driveway and began loading the items into her vehicle, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

When the woman who lives there and her friend asked Erickson what she was doing and pulled a tricycle from the trunk, Erickson allegedly shoved one of them and punched the other in the face, according to the sheriff’s office.

Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said Erickson tried slapping her several times before the woman could get away

Brown said Erickson then got into her car and drove off with a wagon and unspecified other children’s toys.

Law enforcement spotted her vehicle fairly quickly but Erickson wouldn’t pull over, continuing for several miles along state Route 508, Brown states in a news release.

A spike strip set up at Cinebar Road punctured one of her tires, but Erickson continued to drive on its rim until finally stopping in a ditch near Centralia-Alpha Road, according to Brown.

Brown states Erickson spoke nonsensically and had no explanation for her behavior or the theft.  They don’t believe alcohol was a factor, according to Brown.

Erickson was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree robbery and attempting to elude.

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Wednesday, September 24th, 2014

Updated at 12:40 p.m.

SEX CRIME ALLEGATIONS

• A 22-year-old Winlock man was arrested about 9:30 a.m. yesterday at the 400 block of Sears Road in Winlock in connection with an ongoing investigation in which he allegedly had sexual relations with a 15-year-old girl. The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reports the two considered themselves in a dating relationship and Michael A. Ryan Jr. was arrested for three counts of third-degree rape of a child for instances occurring between August and December of last year. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the sheriff’s office.

• A 30-year-old Centralia man was arrested yesterday evening following allegations he touched the private parts of a 6-year-old female friend of the family. Allen A. Clark was contacted about 6 p.m. in connection with an incident that allegedly took place previously at Newaukum Golf Drive in Chehalis and arrested for first-degree child molestation, according to the  Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. However, he is to be released with no criminal  charges filed pending further investigation.

MISSING MEDS

• Police took a report last night about the theft of medication from the 900 block of F Street in Centralia.

MISSING MONEY

• Police were called to the 900 block of South Schueber Road about 12:10 p.m. yesterday about the theft of money while the victim was in the hospital. The case is under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.

MISSING HEADLIGHT

• A 34-year-old Centralia resident on a bicycle who last night reportedly tried to evade an officer attempting to stop him and warn him about not having lights was arrested for obstructing a public servant. Levi P. Hart was cited and then released, after contact with police about 10:50 p.m. at the 1000 block of Harrison Avenue, according to the Centralia Police Department.

DISORDERLINESS

• A call yesterday morning about a woman chanting and throwing rocks at passing motorists along the 9000 block of U.S. Highway 12 ended with a warrant arrest for the agitated suspect at the Gas Plus in Morton, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. As a deputy arrived about 10:30 a.m., the woman had just boarded a bus and when it stopped in Morton and she was contacted, the deputy learned she was wanted by Chehalis police in connection with a previous disorderly person case, according to the sheriff’s office. Thirty-six-year-old Heather Villalba of Mossyrock was booked into the Lewis County Jail.

DOG FIGHT

• Chehalis police were called about 3:20 p.m. yesterday to the parking lot at Yard Birds Mall to a report one dog attacked another dog inside a vehicle. Detective Sgt. Gary Wilson said he didn’t have all the details yet, but believed it involved a Healer and a Dachshund and understood it was fairly horrific. The smaller dog was taken to a veterinarian severely injured, he said. The pets both belong to the same man who was inside Yard Birds, he said. The animal control officer is investigating.

BARN FIRE AVERTED

• Firefighters were called about 7 p.m. yesterday to a barn fire near the 200 block of Cousins Road west of Chehalis. There was a little bit of fire inside the structure that had begun working its way up a wall but the owner had put it out with a garden hose before the crew arrived, according to Lewis County Fire District 6.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, misdemeanor assault, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license; responses for dispute, shoplifting, collision on city street, suspicious person … and more.

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014

SWITCHED PLATES

• A 75-year-old man called Chehalis police yesterday to report someone had stolen his license plates after he got a call from the Seattle Police Department telling him his van was used in a robbery. The man took a look at his vehicle and realized neither the front or back plates he saw were his, according to the Chehalis Police Department. He suspects it could have happened while the van was at property he owns on the 1100 block of North National Avenue, according to police. His van wasn’t involved in the robbery, detective Sgt. Gary Wilson said.

STOLEN COMPUTER

• Centralia police were called about 3:15 a.m. today to the 500 block of East Magnolia Street about the theft of a computer from a residence.  The case is under investigation.

CAR PROWL

• Chehalis police were called about 11 a.m. yesterday about a wallet taken from a vehicle while parked at the McDonald’s at Airport Depot on the 1400 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue.

VANDALISM

• A Centralia police officer took a report about 6:40 p.m. yesterday of a window at a local business shattered by an unknown suspect on the 600 block of North Tower Avenue.

MISSING CHILD

• Chehalis police were called at 3:05 p.m. yesterday about a missing 5-year-old boy from Cascade Elementary School who didn’t get off his school bus. Officers searched the area and by about 4:20 p.m. the child was located at Southeast Sixth Street and Washington Avenue, according to the Chehalis Police Department. An officer took him back to the school where he was reunited with his mother, detective Sgt. Gary Wilson said.

WRECK

• Two people were transported to Morton General Hospital after a wreck yesterday evening on U.S. Highway 12 near at the east end of Savio Road near Randle. Lewis County Fire District 18 Chief Ed Lowe said they assisted District 14 with the approximately 7 p.m. call. Firefighters had to extricate the occupants by cutting the truck, which was hauling a car trailer, Lowe said. “I don’t know what caused it, it was in the ditch with the truck on its side,” Lowe said.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, misdemeanor  theft, violation of protection order, driving under the influence; responses for alarms, disputes, suspicious person … and more.

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Monday, September 22nd, 2014

Updated at 6:13 p.m.

DOGS GONE WILD

• A 59-year-old Chehalis-area man will be issued a citation after five dogs reportedly ran from his yard and surrounded a passerby, barking and growling at her. The 28-year-old woman was bit in the calf by one of the dogs, in the Friday afternoon incident along the 100 block of Hillcrest Road south of Chehalis, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The dog’s owner was just cited in July for the same offense, prohibited activities by dogs, according to the sheriff’s office.

• Chehalis police were called about 3:45 p.m. on Friday to the 300 block of James Street where a dog attacked and killed another dog. The family had brought home a pit bull that was otherwise friendly, but  took a dislike to the smaller canine that already lived there, according to the Chehalis Police Department. An animal control officer removed both animals at the request of the owners, according to police.

• On Saturday morning, a deputy was called to the 200 block of Klein Road south of Chehalis after four to five black pit bulls came to a woman’s yard, growled at her and then attacked her dog who ran out to defend her. She was able to chase them off and rescue her dog, but it sustained multiple cuts and a broken leg, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The 62-year-old owner will be issued a citation, according to the sheriff’s office.

BREAK-IN RANDLE

• A Randle residence on the 9000 block of U.S. Highway 12 was burglarized sometime between 6 p.m. on Friday and 1 p.m. on Saturday. Someone came through an open window in the home that being renovated and stole a horse collar, a can of paint, a small antique clock and a figurine of a man playing a fiddle, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

DRUGS

• Conrad J. Perry, 31, was arrested this morning after police were called about a man asleep behind the wheel parked at a fuel pump at the 600 block of West Main Street in Chehalis. An arriving officer noted a pipe on the center console, which tested positive for methamphetamine, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Perry was awakened and then booked into the Lewis County Jail for possession, police said.

RIDING THE RAILS, INTO THE JAIL

• A 48-year-old man from California was arrested for trespassing after a 911 call from a train heading into Chehalis, saying a man with a duffel bag was traveling on one of its engines around 12:15 a.m. yesterday. The train stopped at West Street and a man walking away was contacted, according to police. Cristopher S. Hazen was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

FROM PARADISE TO JAIL

• A 68-year-old woman was arrested on Saturday after a deputy was dispatched to the 100 block of Paradise Drive in Ashford about a trespasser. Virginia V. Creim said she used to own the property and was waiting for its new owner to arrive to see if she could buy it back, but a deputy contacted the 53-year-old Tacoma man who owns it and he said he wanted her off his property and wanted to pursue charges,  according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Creim, who is described by the sheriff’s office as transient, was booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree trespassing as well as a warrant for failing to appear in court for a previous trespass case, according to Chief Ciivl Deputy Stacy Brown.

CAR PROWL

• Chehalis police took a report about 11:30 a.m. on Saturday of stereo equipment stolen from a vehicle parked at the Twin City Town  Center on the 1400 block of Louisiana Avenue.

• Centralia police were called to a vehicle prowl about 1 p.m. on Saturday at the 2500 block of Mount Vista Road where someone had smashed the window and stole a purse.

• An officer took a report that someone got into a car parked at a business at the 200 block of Williams Street in Mossyrock  and stole a Kindle, a CD holder and prescription medication, last Monday morning, according to the Morton Police Department.

VANDALISM

• Someone slashed a tire on a vehicle at the 200 block of North Tower Avenue in Centralia, according to a report made to police about 11 a.m. yesterday.

BRUSH FIRE WINLOCK

• Local firefighters spent a few hours on Saturday shuttling water for personnel from the Department of Natural Resources as they extinguished a brush fire in Winlock that may have been smoldering for a couple of days before it was found. Firefighters were called just before 4 p.m. on Saturday to the 100 block of Brady Lane after a neighbor that smelled smoke went out to investigate, according to Lewis County Fire District 15. Firefighter Patrick Jacobson said it it was an area of about 100 feet by 100 feet beyond the yard behind a house, a place that looked like it had been cleared of brush. It was not a very active fire, but a lot of smoldering Jacobson said. The property owners were away, he said.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, trespass, obstruction, shoplifting, probation violation,  misdemeanor assault, driving under the influence, driving with suspended license; responses for disputes, collisions on city street, collisions on county roads … and more.

News brief: Firefighting efforts in forest outside Pe Ell winding down

Monday, September 22nd, 2014

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Authorities reported yesterday morning the timberland fire southwest of Pe Ell is entirely contained.

More than 200 firefighters battled the blaze about five miles outside of town that began Sept. 11 in an active logging area, on property owned by Rayonier.

A dozen individuals expect to be out there a few more days continuing to mop up, according to Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Jay Guthrie.

Guthrie said there is no fire activity within 200 feet of the edge. One hundred twenty-six acres of so-called slash, recently harvested timber and standing timber burned.

Some logging is expected to clear areas so crews can access remaining hot spots, according to Guthrie. It is unlikely after this point that any smoke will be visible from Pe Ell and surrounding communities, he said.

The property is in Pacific County, at the Lewis County line. The command center was set up at the Falls Creek Retreat Center about 10 miles west of Pe Ell.

The cause is under investigation.