Lewis County Sirens.com

Updated at 6:16 p.m.

POLICE: CHEHALIS MAN ASSAULTS TWO, POINTS GUN

• A Chehalis man is jailed after an incident last night in which police were called to a Centralia apartment complex about an individual threatening people with a gun. Officers responding just after 10:30 p.m. to the 700 block of South Tower Avenue were told 27-year-old Tony Chafin arrived looking for his girlfriend who had recently broken up with him, according to the Centralia Police Department. He and someone with him knocked on a door and Chafin pointed what appeared to be a shotgun at some subjects, according to police. Police Sgt. Kurt Reichert said Chafin ordered one man to the ground outside and kicked him in the stomach. Another man who tried to run but fell down was kicked in the head, Reichert said. Officers from Centralia, Chehalis and the sheriff’s office tracked Chafin down in Chehalis where he was taken into custody without incident at about 2 a.m., according to police. No gun was found, police said. Reichert said witnesses described the gun as wrapped in cloth or covered up by a backpack or a duffle bag. Chafin was arrested for first-degree assault and booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.  Chafin was released without charges later today. Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said Chafin was struck from the calendar (of those who go before a judge to make their first appearance), meaning the person is no longer on the calendar today. He didn’t elaborate.

GUNS AND MONEY MISSING

• A deputy called to a Doty-area home Monday regarding missing guns and cash learned the family went out of town for the weekend while one daughter stayed home and had a party with a large number of guests, some she didn’t invite or even know. The Friday night gathering on the 100 block of Front Street saw fights breaking out, vehicles driving through the yard and the young woman finally asking people to leave and going to bed after thinking she had locked the door, a deputy was told. Missing is a 12-gauge shotgun, a 22 rifle with a “camo” stock, a scope, $600 from a drawer and $51 from a teenager’s dresser, according to the sheriff’ office.

MASS MOVIES OVERDUE AT LIBRARY

• Chehalis police are looking into someone using someone else’s library card to check out DVD movies which have not been returned. The loss is estimated at more than $1,300, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

THEFT

• Deputies are looking for the 19-year-old nephew of a Chehalis-area woman who reported she suspected he took a bank card from her purse and withdrew $500 from her account via an ATM on Onalaska, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. Deputies are attempting to locate video surveillance evidence, according to the sheriff’s office.

• Police were called about 5:30 p.m. yesterday to the 1100 block of Crosby Avenue in Centralia regarding the theft of a diamond ring sometime during the last two weeks.

• Police were called about 11:30 a.m. yesterday to the 2600 block of Cooks Hill Road in Centralia about the tailgate of a Nissan pickup truck which had been taken over the weekend.

• Centralia police took a report yesterday evening from the 1200 block of Mellen Street regarding a purse stolen from inside a vehicle.

• A cell phone was stolen from a vehicle at the 1100 block of South Pearl Street sometime during the previous few days, according to a report made to the Centralia Police Department yesterday.

TEEN ARRESTED FOR LIGHTING FIRE

• Chehalis police were called about 10:20 p.m. yesterday to a home on Northwest Ohio Avenue where a 15-year-old boy who was upset with his parents allegedly lit on fire some papers behind a china cabinet. The teen was booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center for first-degree reckless burning, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

VANDALISM

• Centralia police took a report yesterday from the cemetery on the 400 block of North Washington Avenue after the discovery someone had destroyed about 30 little little flags which had been placed on grave sites for Memorial Day.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving under the influence; responses for alarms, people attempting to pass a counterfeit check, stolen wallet, various types of harassment, possible overdose, someone arrested for drugs in a case in which information from police is not readily available … and more.

Updated at 8:52 p.m.

LUCRATIVE BUT UNRULY PASSENGER KICKS CABBIE

• A deputy was called to a Packwood home about 2:30 a.m. on Friday after a resident allegedly stiffed a taxi driver on a $400 fare, a ride into Morton for some drinks and a ride home afterward, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The sheriff’s office said that on the way home, the 63-year-old man had the cabbie stop at the Shell Foodmart to hit up the ATM as was their ordinary routine, but for whatever reason it didn’t work and he said he could pay when they got to his house on Cannon Road. The cab driver told a deputy that when he tried to collect his money, his passenger kicked him in the stomach. “The victim did not want to press charges for the assault, he just wanted to get paid,” Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said. The case is being referred to prosecutors with a recommendation of a charge for third-degree theft, according to the sheriff’s office. The amount owed included another $200 for a cleanup fee because the customer urinated in the front seat, Brown said.

FAKE MONEY

• Two Centralia men were arrested last night after they allegedly spent a counterfeit $20 bill to make a small purchase at the 500 block of South Tower Avenue and then used the change to buy beer at another store, according to the Centralia Police Department. An officer called about 9:30 p.m. arrested Luke T. Baker, 43, and Thomas J. Roy, 39, for forgery and booked them into the Lewis County Jail, according to police. Sgt. Kurt Reichert said his department is aware of seven or eight fake $20 bills passed in the recent past. How many more are out there? Reichert said he has no idea. Baker is being released without charges pending further investigation. Roy is being held on a warrant.

FAKE NAME

• A 31-year-old Toledo woman was arrested for identity theft because she lied about her name to a deputy on Saturday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. A deputy responding to a report of suspicious activity at Gee Cees truck stop on Foster Creek Road near Vader contacted the occupants of a vehicle and one of them said she was Sarah Meyer, according to the sheriff’s office. Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said the deputy knew Meyer and knew the woman was not her. The female subsequently identified as Michelle Price, was wanted on an outstanding misdemeanor warrant and was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to Brown.

WINDOW SMASHED

• Deputies are looking for a 23-year-old Rochester man after he allegedly broke a window at his ex-girlfriend’s home on the 1800 block of Lincoln Creek Road early yesterday morning when she refused to let him inside. A deputy responding about 1:40 a.m. reported the loss is about $100, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Police were called about 7:30 a.m. yesterday about a car prowl on the 500 block of Ash Street in Centralia. Someone broke a window or windows to get inside and took a wallet, a camera and CDs, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Chehalis police were called about 12:45 a.m. yesterday to the 600 block of Southwest William Avenue about a laptop computer stolen from a vehicle.

• A 43-year-old Puyallup woman contacted the sheriff’s office about 5 p.m. on Saturday after she discovered someone had prowled her vehicle as it was parked near the Packwood Airport during the community’s flea market event. Missing were two jackets, two Motorola walkie talkies and a GPS device, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. It appeared a door was left unlocked, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

• A purse containing credit cards and an iPhone were stolen from a vehicle parked at the 12,000 block of U.S. Highway 12 between 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The victim said she left the pink, fabric shoulder bag on the passenger seat of the unlocked locked vehicle, according to the sheriff’s office.

ILLEGAL WEAPON

• A 35-year-old Salkum man, Larry E. Ridgley, stopped on Sunday evening for driving an ATV on the 700 block of Gore Road with a suspended license was subsequently arrested for possession of a dangerous weapon; brass knuckles discovered in  his pants, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

DRUGS

• A 28-year-old homeless man was arrested for possession of heroin about 1:20 a.m. today when a Chehalis police officers stopped two males on bicycles without proper lighting at the 600 block of North National Avenue. Douglas M. Capelli was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police. The officer confiscated about five and half grams of suspected heroin, police said. However, he was charged this afternoon with delivery of a controlled substance in connection with an ongoing case. His defense attorney in arguing for lower bail suggested to a judge Capelli couldn’t be much of a community safety risk given that police didn’t arrest him back in October when they could have. “The reason we’re here now, they’re doing this, is he didn’t follow through on a deal to rat someone out,” Chehalis attorney Bob Schroeter said. His bail was set at $25,000, half of what prosecutors requested.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• A former area attorney who was disbarred was charged with second-degree organized retail theft and possession of methamphetamine, both as a principal or an accomplice in Lewis County Superior Court today. Roland T. Hunter, 52, of Tacoma, appeared before a judge following his Saturday arrest at the Centralia Outlets for his alleged role in a shoplifting spree. Matthew D. Drennan, 36, of Edgewood, was arrested at the same time and charged today with the same offenses. Hunter works in Edgewood selling used cars, defense attorney Bob Schroeter told the judge. Bail was set at $10,000 for both men. Centralia police called about 5:30 p.m. to the shopping center on Lum Road found the pair’s vehicle with merchandise taken from several stores. Schroeter said he didn’t remember the details of Hunter’s troubles as lawyer, but thought he worked in Centralia until several years ago.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving under the influence; responses for parking lot hit and run, other non-injury collisions, misdemeanor assault, shoplifting, suspicious circumstances, suspected suicide … and more.

SHOP LOCAL, BUT PLEASE PAY UNLESS YOU WANT ACCOMMODATIONS AT THE GRAY BAR HOTEL

• A shopping spree for two Pierce County men ended yesterday with their arrests at the Centralia Outlets for organized retail theft and possession of methamphetamine. Police called about 5:30 p.m. to the 1300 block of Lum Road regarding a shoplifted purse found a pair of suspects in an adjacent store and a vehicle with merchandise inside it from places such as Aeropostale, Corning, Nike, Sunbirds in Chehalis and Sears at the Lewis County Mall, according to the Centralia Police Department. When one of the men was patted down, an officer discovered suspected stolen goods such as sunglasses and gloves, along with a tie from another retailer, Sgt. Kurt Reichert said. “They cuffed him,” Reichert said. One of the subjects was seen kicking a bag under a patrol car; it contained suspected meth, according to police. The total value of the goods was $1,665, but it only takes hitting three or more stores to push a misdemeanor shoplifting offense up to the felony of organized retail theft, according to Reichert. Police counted approximately nine victim businesses. Centralia has lately become somewhat of a destination location for “northerners” engaging in this type of activity, Reichert said. Roland T. Hunter, 52, of Tacoma, and Matthew D. Drennan, 36, of Edgewood, were  booked into the Lewis County Jail.

DRUGS

• A 39-year-old Rochester man was arrested for possession of methamphetamine following a traffic stop about 10:50 p.m. on Friday on West Main Street and North Washington Avenue in Centralia. An officer asked James W. Strothman if he wanted to retrieve anything from his vehicle before it was impounded and he asked for a small black bag, according to police. The officer checked to make sure it didn’t have any weapon inside before handing it over and found a handgun and a baggie of a powdered substance, according to police. The Rochester man was booked into the Lewis County Jail.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Centralia police were called just before 9 a.m. yesterday to the 1500 block of South Gold Street after a woman discovered someone had taken her purse and keys from the back of her truck. She was getting ready to leave and set them there while walking a dog, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• A leather jacket was reported stolen from an unlocked car at the 1100 block of West Pear Street in Centralia on Friday morning.

WRECKS

• A 62-year-old Olympia man was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital after a single-vehicle collision yesterday evening on Interstate 5 near Vader. Troopers called about 6:30 p.m. to the southbound lanes near milepost 58 found that traffic had slowed in front of Bill Bakke who was unable to stop. Bakke moved to the left into the concrete barrier, then rotated back the other way coming to rest in the right lane, according to the Washington State Patrol. His 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt was described as totaled. He was cited for following too closely, according to the state patrol.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, DUI, 49-year-old woman walking in the middle of the roadway disrupting traffic; responses for possible identity theft, for shoplifting such as a man pushing a baby stroller at Outlet stores, alcohol and energy drink from grocery store … and more.