In brief: Man jailed on assault charge
Police arrested a man Saturday for allegedly cutting his wife with a shard of broken glass.
Erlan L. Acosta, 43, was booked into the county jail on suspicion of second-degree assault, the Spokane Police Department said.
Officers had responded to a 911 call placed by a child to the 2600 block of West 16th Avenue. They found a woman with a deep cut to her face and several to her arms and arrested her husband, police said.
Car theft, chase ends in crash
The driver of a stolen van took police on a chase late Friday that ended when the van crashed into another car, and then into a home where a couple were sleeping, police said.
A passenger in the van was transported to a hospital for leg injuries, as were the occupants of a car involved in the crash with the van. The residents of the home were unharmed. Police are investigating the theft of the Dodge Caravan, as well as the crash.
The chase began about 11 p.m. Friday when officers saw the white Caravan being driven about 70 mph around Illinois and Dakota. The van turned off its lights and police had trouble tracking it. Officers were never close enough to turn on lights and siren in the chase, the Spokane Police Department said in a news release.
Eventually, the van sped through a stop sign at Mission while going north on Stone and collided with a Honda Accord, police said. The van then struck the curb and slid on the driver’s side into the corner of a house on the northeast corner of Stone and Mission – the same corner where the occupants’ bedroom is located.
Spokane officers arrived shortly after the collision and found one of the occupants in the van with his legs pinned underneath the vehicle.
The driver fled on foot. Investigators are developing information to determine the driver’s identity. The driver is facing charges including possession of a stolen vehicle and reckless driving, police said.
Brush fire damages arboretum
A brush fire covering about an acre and a half along Interstate 90 near Exit 277 spread to Finch Arboretum on Saturday night, causing damage to some plants, according to the Spokane Fire Department.
The fire started about 5:30 p.m., and firefighters contained the blaze in about two hours. Cleanup and observation were expected to continue through today.
Cause of the fire was unknown as of late Friday. The investigation will continue this morning, said Battalion Chief Dan Brown.
The fire hit the south side of the arboretum, burning the grass, bushes and some trees but causing no structural damage, he said.
Coeur d’Alene
Driver arrested after fatal crash
A Coeur d’Alene man was arrested for vehicular manslaughter Friday evening following a fatal crash on state Highway 3. Idaho State Police said drugs and alcohol were a factor in the crash, which occurred just after 6 p.m.
Travis L. Doyle, 33, was southbound on Highway 3 near Rosewood Road when he reportedly swerved off the road, then overcorrected, according to Idaho State Police. Doyle’s 2008 Ford Taurus reportedly flipped, ejecting passenger William Q. Fallaw, of Hayden, from the vehicle.
Fallaw, 35, died at the scene.
According to ISP, neither man was wearing a seat belt.
Las Vegas
Suspect arrested in knife attack
A man was arrested in Las Vegas early Saturday on a $1 million warrant for attempted murder in connection with a Friday morning stabbing and knife attack that nearly severed the arm of a Rathdrum man.
Harley C. Fietsam, 19, of Las Vegas, was arrested by the FBI and Las Vegas police, Coeur d’Alene police Sgt. Christie Wood said Saturday. She described Fietsam as the “main suspect” in the stabbing of Robert S. Rehfeldt.
Police described the incident as a “random road rage” attack.
Michael Macintosh Mcphedran, 22, was arrested Friday after turning himself in to Coeur d’Alene police. Wood said Mcphedran is at least suspected of battery against Rehfeldt, who was stabbed numerous times and kicked in the head.
Two female juveniles were questioned and released, Wood said. Neither has been charged with a crime.
The incident occurred at Fruitland Lane and Stoddard Avenue in Coeur d’Alene, not far from the intersection of Highway 95 and Appleway Avenue.
Rehfeldt was treated at Kootenai Medical Center and released.
Authorities will begin the extradition process to bring Fietsam – who reportedly flew to Las Vegas following the alleged attack – to North Idaho to face the charges, Wood said.