Running car stolen on dare, police say
A 25-year-old man was arrested Wednesday after telling police he stole a running car on a dare.
A pizza deliveryman reportedly left his Honda Civic running outside the 7-Eleven at 2122 N. Pines Road while he went inside, said Spokane Valley Police Department spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan in a press release. He came out in time to see his car being driven away, accompanied by a black Honda with a red roof.
As police talked to the deliveryman at the convenience store, the Honda with the red roof drove by. Police pursued and the woman driving said her boyfriend and another man had just given her the car, Reagan said.
Police went to the boyfriend’s apartment and saw the stolen Honda parked nearby. They found Adam D. Darnall of Moses Lake hiding inside the apartment. He allegedly told police he took the car because a friend dared him to.
Darnell was arrested on two warrants and was also booked into the Spokane County Jail on a charge of taking a motor vehicle without the owner’s permission.
Pickup smashes into cars
A man allegedly under the influence of pain medication caused damage to several cars at 8 a.m. Thursday as he drove east on Broadway.
Witnesses told police that a man was driving a GMC pickup at high speed on Broadway, weaving in and out of traffic, said Reagan. When the driver reached Argonne, he reportedly clipped a 2004 Toyota Sequoia, ripping off the vehicle’s left side mirror.
The GMC then allegedly rear-ended a Chevrolet Suburban, which in turn crashed into a Pontiac Aztek. The driver of the Suburban had neck and back pain and the other two drivers were uninjured.
The driver of the GMC was identified as Matthew T. Collett, 46, of Loon Lake, Wash. He was arrested on charges of driving while under the influence of drugs, said Reagan. He suffered a bruised leg in the crash.
Motel patron assaulted
A man at the Maple Tree Motel on East Sprague Avenue told police a man kicked down his door and assaulted him Tuesday evening.
The victim, whom police did not identify, said his attacker grabbed him and tried to drag him out the door. His arm was injured, said Reagan.
The victim told police the man had been sitting outside the motel all day, drinking and arguing with people. Police arrested Jerry T. Kamien, 44, on a charge of first-degree burglary. Kamien was wearing shoes that matched a footprint left on the victim’s door, police said.
Son’s friend arrested in theft
A woman who noticed two heirloom rings missing from her bathroom tracked them down at a local pawn shop Tuesday.
The rings went missing Sunday after the woman’s son had a friend over to visit, said Reagan in a press release. The friend, 18-year-old Kyle J. Benner, had reportedly talked about having an addiction to Oxycontin, Reagan said.
When the woman noticed the rings were missing, she was suspicious of Benner and took photos of the rings to Pawn One on East Sprague Avenue and found the rings there. Employees told police that Benner had pawned the rings for $80 on Sunday, Reagan said.
Benner, of 11221 E. 20th, allegedly told police that he used the $80 to buy a single Oxycontin pill. He was booked into the Spokane County Jail on felony charges of first-degree theft and first-degree trafficking stolen property.
Marijuana found in closet
Police were called by a concerned relative and asked to check on a Spokane Valley man Tuesday, but when police arrived they allegedly found marijuana growing in the man’s closet.
Police were checking on David L. Reeser, 19, at his apartment at 13303 E. Mission Ave. He invited the officers inside, where they allegedly saw a purple marijuana pipe on the floor, said Reagan in a press release.
The officers also reported seeing a box full of plastic bags, electronic drug scales and other drug paraphernalia, Reagan said. They also noticed light shining around the closet door and opened it to reveal a foil-lined space with 5-foot-tall marijuana plants.
Reeser was arrested on charges of possession of methadone and manufacturing a controlled substance (marijuana).
Cracked windshield leads to arrests
Police stopped a car early Tuesday because it had a badly cracked windshield and arrested the driver and passenger on drug charges.
The officer who stopped the car near Trent and Argonne recognized the passenger as Robby J. Wahrer, 24, and knew that he had several warrants out for his arrest, said police spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan.
After arresting Wahrer, of 17920 E. Boone, police allegedly found a drug pipe containing a small amount of methamphetamine inside his coat. He was booked on a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance in addition to the warrants for vehicle prowling, first degree trafficking in stolen property and two counts of second degree theft.
The driver was identified as 23-year-old Shawna L. Rogers. Police reportedly found a glass drug pipe inside the car’s glove box and a small amount of meth in Rogers’ clothing, Reagan said. She was arrested on a charge of possession of a controlled substance.
Homeowner helps nab prowlers
A Greenacres resident reportedly saw two men breaking into his car last Saturday night and called police on his cell phone as he followed the pair when they drove away.
The resident had been watching television in his home in the 16400 block of East Valleyway when he heard a noise in his back yard, police spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan wrote in a press release. He looked out to see two men breaking into his car.
Police caught up with the pair at Flora and Broadway. The homeowner’s car had a broken windshield and a punched ignition, Reagan said. The two men, identified as Yan G. Yefremovboth cq, 19, and Yuriy N. Yasmenkoboth cq, 23, were arrested and charged with second-degree malicious mischief and vehicle prowling.
Police also allegedly found stolen driver’s licenses in Yefremov’s possession.