In brief: Stolen items found; suspects named
Two men are facing charges after Spokane Valley police on Friday recovered items stolen during a pair of residential burglaries last weekend.
According to detectives, a home was burglarized in the 11100 block of East 22nd Avenue last week. The resident’s Dodge Durango was stolen, and the home was “cleaned out,” said Sgt. Dave Reagan, police spokesman. A second burglary was reported in the 12000 block of East 24th Avenue. The family’s Mitsubishi Outlander was stolen, and the home gutted of possessions, Reagan said.
Arrested in possession of the stolen Outlander was Anthony T. Falasco, 28, who also possessed a stolen check from one of the two burglaries, Reagan said. The Durango and other items have also been recovered.
While searching for a second suspect, Marcus R. Jolly, 27, police found an illegal shotgun, a pipe bomb and more stolen property at an apartment on South Havana Street Friday night. Police were told Jolly may have been staying at the complex, Reagan said. The explosives disposal team was called in to render the pipe bomb safe.
Jolly is still wanted. His last known address is 1328 E. Rich Ave. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Check at (509) 456-2233.
Driver ejected in two-car collision
A 21-year-old woman ejected from her car in a two-car crash Thursday was in satisfactory condition Friday. Troopers say the Chattaroy resident is lucky she wasn’t more badly injured.
About 8 p.m., Kyndra Phillips turned off Meadow Lane Road into northbound traffic on Highway 2, according to the Washington State Patrol. Phillips’ car collided with a 1990 Honda Civic vehicle driven by 16-year-old Cody Salter. He was not hurt.
Despite wearing a seat belt, Phillips was ejected from her 1996 Ford Escort, troopers said. Phillips was ticketed for failure to yield.
Masked man robs pizza restaurant
Spokane police are asking for the public’s assistance in identifying a man who robbed Pizza Rita about 9:30 p.m. Thursday.
Authorities describe the armed man as 18 to 20 years old and wearing baggy clothing, a ski mask and black gloves. He left the business at 5511 N. Wall St. with an undisclosed amount of cash, police said.
Officers arrived two minutes after the robbery was reported, said Spokane police Officer Dave Daddato. Authorities attempted to track the suspect using a police dog, but the trail ended in an alley where police think the suspect fled in a vehicle.
No one was hurt during the robbery, police said.
Remains found in forest identified
Kootenai County authorities have identified a body found earlier this month in the Coeur d’Alene National Forest as that of Melvin K. Skaggs, 51.
Skaggs’ remains were found Feb. 7 in a sleeping bag inside a tent, officials said. Two hunters spotted the remains just east of the Fernan Gun Range.
Authorities think Skaggs had been in the Coeur d’Alene National Forest since August or September 2008.
Skaggs was identified through dental records, said Capt. Ben Wolfinger, sheriff’s office spokesman. Skaggs reportedly told people he was ill and wanted to die in the woods.
“According to the Kootenai County coroner’s office, cause of death is believed to be due to complications from diabetes,” Wolfinger said. “All evidence from the scene supports this conclusion.”
Senate to hear bill on utility contract
OLYMPIA – A bill designed to help solve a long-standing dispute between Pend Oreille County and Seattle’s electric utility over the Boundary Dam moved toward a Senate vote Thursday.
A 10-year contract that set payments for the impacts of the dam expired in 2008, and when Seattle City Light and the county couldn’t agree on a new one, the utility stopped payments which at the time were $1.3 million a year. The bill would require the utility to continue making payments during negotiations and pay for the cost of arbitration if talks break down.
The bill passed the House 93-3 last week and its sponsor, Rep. Joel Kretz, R-Wauconda, said it already prompted the utility to agree to a temporary contract and a $2.1 million payment to the county. Legislators may add a formula to the law to set payments and avoid future disputes when the next 10-year contract expires, he said.