Three Pines Road area businesses burglarized
Three businesses located near the intersection of Pines and Sprague were hit by burglars last weekend, but the burglars came away empty-handed in two of the break-ins.
The owner of GameQuest, 25 S. Pines Road, discovered his business had been entered when he arrived Sunday afternoon. After a recent burglary, he stopped keeping cash in the business so the burglars did not take anything, said Spokane Valley Police Department spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan.
Surveillance video showed two masked and gloved men breaking a bathroom window and then kicking an interior door open.
The owner of House of Games, 1014 N. Pines Road, went to his store just after midnight Sunday and found a broken window and missing cash register, Reagan said. He told police that the register contained only a small amount of cash.
A burglary at neighboring Sipz Espresso also was discovered Sunday morning. An employee arrived for work just after 7 a.m. and found the front door open, Reagan said but told police nothing had been taken.
Anyone with information on the burglaries is asked to call the Spokane Valley Police tip line at 242-8477.
Sheet Metal Workers hall broken into
The Sheet Metal Workers Union Hall was hit by burglars Wednesday night but nothing appeared to have been taken.
Spokane Valley Police responded to the hall at 7209 E. Trent Ave. at 9:40 p.m. after an alarm sounded at the building, said police spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan. They found the glass in the front door broken when they arrived.
A filing cabinet drawer was open and a union representative wasn’t sure if anything was missing, Reagan said. The union apparently leased the front office to a painters union and no one from that union could be reached to identify possible missing items, he said. Nothing in the office appeared to be disturbed.
Anyone with information on the burglary is asked to call the Spokane Valley Police tip line at 242-8477.
Man arrested after stolen car found
A Spokane Valley police officer’s hunch led to the recovery of a stolen car early Wednesday morning.
Officer Ryan Smith knew of a home in the 600 block of South Fiske that had been associated with various stolen vehicles in the past, said police spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan. He drove by the house around 2 a.m. Wednesday and found a 1986 Honda Accord parked in the driveway. The Accord had been taken from a McDonald’s parking lot in Spokane on Dec. 31.
The officer doubled back and spotted a man near the car who went into a back yard, Reagan said. Police found Eric R. Morris, 35, hiding in a detached garage in the back yard.
Witnesses told police that they had seen Morris driving the car earlier. Police arrested Morris, who said he was a transient, on a felony charge of first-degree possession of stolen property.
The Accord had extensive damage to the ignition and had to be towed away, Reagan said.
Loaded van left behind after burglary
Burglars loaded a van with furniture but failed to take it with them when they left a Spokane Valley business sometime late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.
The burglary was discovered when an employee of Spokane Discount, 523 S. Dishman-Mica Road, arrived at work Wednesday morning, said Spokane Valley Police Department spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan. The burglars reportedly cut through padlocks and chains securing the gate to a fenced yard where various items were being stored.
The ignitions of a box van and pickup were damaged and the van had been loaded with several furniture items, Reagan said.
A similar burglary in November led to the loss of thousands of dollars worth of merchandise.
Anyone with information on the burglary is asked to call the Spokane Valley Police tip line at 242-8477.
Son arrested for driving mom’s car without permission
It doesn’t pay to take mom’s car.
Spokane Valley Police arrested Jonathan P. Marquiss, 28, Wednesday after catching him driving his mother’s car, which she had reported stolen.
He was spotted at 3 p.m. in the area of Sprague and Flora by an officer who had just finished taking a burglary report from the man’s mother, said police spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan. The woman, whom police did not identify, discovered her television, stereo system and car missing that day.
The woman told police her son did not have permission to have her car, a 1988 Ford Taurus. Police also discovered drug paraphernalia, bolt cutters and other common burglary tools when they recovered the car, Reagan said.
Marquiss, who gave his address as 204 N. Hodges, was booked into the Spokane County Jail on a felony charge of taking a motor vehicle without the owner’s permission.