Two Groups Arrested For Stereo, Car Theft

A crew of car stereo thieves ripped off another band of thieves last week before police arrested both groups.

Five of the seven arrested March 6 were North Side juveniles. Authorities released one 18-year-old man, but another, Matthew Lawrence, 18, is awaiting an arraignment date for charges of possession of stolen items.

According to police, two youths and Lawrence arranged to meet with a second group in the NorthTown Mall parking lot to sell a stolen car stereo.

But the prospective buyers, who were driving a tan Suburban, thought the car stereo was stolen from them earlier.

A juvenile pulled a loaded shotgun from the Suburban and Lawrence and the two other prospective sellers ran into the mall, the trio told police. Two youths from the buying group drove away in the sellers’ red Nissan Sentra and two others left in the Suburban.

The sellers called police and told them that their car had been stolen. An officer later stopped and arrested the two in the Sentra.

An officer found the Suburban abandoned at the corner of Ash and Glass, tracked the two youths and arrested them in a nearby yard.

All four were arrested for stealing the car. Lawrence and the other two others were arrested for possession of stolen property. The car stereo was stolen from Deer Park last month, police said.

North Side man arrested

A simple ticket for speeding turned into a much bigger headache for North Side man David Blair.

An officer pulled over Blair, 37, on North Division and found a Pandora’s box of violations. Blair, 4707 N. Regal, had an outstanding warrant for violating a restraining order and the car he was driving was reported stolen.

The officer arrested Blair and searched his car. He found a rifle reported stolen in Priest River, Idaho, and traces of a white powder in a leather bag containing narcotics equipment.

He is being held in Spokane jail for possesion of stolen property and on the warrant charge.

, DataTimes