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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: 87-year-olds attacked, robbed in their garage

The Spokesman-Review

An elderly Spokane Valley man and woman were both punched in the face and robbed Sunday afternoon while getting out of the car in their garage.

Spokane Valley Police are looking for the man who kicked in the garage’s side door and punched the 87-year-old husband twice in the face. The attacker then ran to the passenger side, punched the 87-year-old wife in the face and yanked away her purse, which contained cash, credit cards and other personal financial documents.

The man ran from the garage in the 11100 block of East 22nd Avenue.

Police said the man ran to a parked car, driven by a female, and they drove off. The car was last seen southbound on Skipworth from 22nd.

The couple, returning from a show at the INB Performing Arts Center, were traumatized and could provide few details, police said. But a neighbor said she saw the assailant and the driver park a silver or champagne-colored four-door sedan in the area about 10 minutes before the attack. The car had a sunroof and a square sticker on the gas-cap door and was believed to be a late-1990s model. The white, female driver had shoulder-length, dark hair. The man was white, unshaven and in his late 20s. The man was between 6 feet and 6 feet 2 inches tall and had a medium build and wore a white-and-black checkered flannel coat and blue jeans. He had dark hair.

Anyone with information regarding the robbery is asked to call the Spokane Valley Police at (509) 242-TIPS.

– Erica F. Curless

Hayden

Blaze destroys empty warehouse

A fire destroyed an unoccupied warehouse in a Hayden industrial park early Sunday.

The cause of the fire was unknown Sunday and remained under investigation, said Northern Lakes fire Lt. Mike Mather.

The warehouse in the 1100 block of Tracey Road, in the Warren K Industrial Park, was “virtually empty.”

Mather said the fire started about 4:30 a.m.

– Erica F. Curless