Some of the week's police cases, as reported by the Anacortes Police Department, first picking up the end of last week's cases...
Thursday, July 2
The owner of a home in the 1200 block of 33rd Street discovered a .22 caliber rifle in a recycling dumpster on the property. The property owner had no idea who the rifle belonged to or who put it inside of the bin. Police took the rifle for safekeeping.
Two 15-year-old Anacortes boys were charged with burglary and malicious mischief after they confessed that they had illegally entered a garage in the 2700 block of W. 2nd Street and discharged several fire extinguishers. Fire extinguisher powder covered almost every surface inside the garage. A ping pong table in the garage was also found to be collapsed and damaged. A witness had seen one of the boys exiting the garage and then discovered the damage.
Officers stopped a car driven by a 44-year-old Anacortes man in the 2200 block of 13th Street after it fled the scene of an altercation that was witnessed by an off-duty police officer. The car had also run a stop sign and initially failed to stop for the officer. The driver aggressively approached and screamed at the officer and only stopped after the officer drew his taser. The man was obviously intoxicated and he admitted to having a “few” drinks. He was very hostile when asked to do field sobriety tests and he threatened to “hunt down and kill” the officer. The man was placed under arrest for drunk driving and he continued to threaten to harm the officer “as soon as the handcuffs came off.” Due to the man’s hostility, he was taken to the county jail for DUI processing where he refused to take a breath test but continued to threaten to kill the officer. The man was charged with DUI and resisting arrest.
A 22-year-old Anacortes man was arrested on Oakes Avenue as a suspect in a previously reported burglary case. During a search of the man, an officer located a marijuana smoking pipe in the man’s pocket. The man was issued a citation for possession of drug paraphernalia.
An employee at a restaurant in the 2800 block of Commercial Avenue reported that an unknown man driving a van through the drive-up food line had made an obscene gesture to the employee. The employee then told the man that he was not going to receive his food. The man then allegedly grabbed for the food which resulted in it being pushed into the employee. The employee was not harmed, but was frightened. Police were unable to locate the vehicle or the man.
A 37-year-old transient woman was contacted in a downtown bar after she had left a nearby restaurant without paying for her food. The woman admitted that she did not have any money. She also could not pay for the 2 drinks that she had consumed at the bar. The woman was cited for two counts of theft.
Friday, July 3
Officers received the report in the early morning hours of an injured fawn near the State ferry terminal. The deer appeared to have been struck by a car and was severely injured. An officer had to put the deer down to end its suffering.
A 28-year-old Oak Harbor woman was contacted at a motel in the 7600 block of State Route 20 after witnesses observed her urinating on some exterior steps at the motel. The woman appeared to be intoxicated and she would not give an answer as to why she was at the motel since she was not a registered guest. The woman denied having urinated by saying “I am a woman.” An officer located the puddle of urine and based upon the witness statement she was arrested for public indecency. The woman was booked into jail as she also had an outstanding warrant for her arrest for a previous driving offense.
A 15-horse power outboard motor and an attached fuel tank and hose were reported stolen from a sailboat that was moored at a marina in the 1000 block of Q Avenue. A lock securing the motor had been cut.
The owners of a boat that had been left at a marine repair yard in the 3300 block of T Avenue discovered that their boat was unlocked and they were missing a laptop computer, navigation software, a wireless router, and two VHF handheld radios. The loss was estimated at approximately $2,500. There are no suspects at this time.
An officer stopped a car on 17th Street that was driven by a 32-year-old Anacortes man after the vehicle traveled on the wrong side of the road and almost struck another car head on. The driver had watery bloodshot eyes and the car smelled strongly of burnt marijuana. The man said that he had smoked marijuana about 5 minutes earlier. The man was unsteady on his feet and performed poorly on field sobriety tests. The man was placed under arrest for DUI for driving under the influence of drugs. The officer located 2 containers of marijuana and an improvised smoking device in the man’s car. The man was taken top the emergency room where he consented to a blood draw. He faces charges of DUI and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia upon return of the blood test results from the State crime lab.
Officers arrested a 23-year-old man after he allegedly punched his father at their residence in the 1600 block of 20th Street. The son was reportedly upset with his father for not siding with him in an argument the son was having with the father’s live-in girlfriend. The 52-year-old woman was also arrested after it was learned that she allegedly grabbed a kitchen knife and threatened to stab the son. Both the son and the woman were booked into jail on domestic violence assault charges.
A 20-year-old Anacortes man was cited for malicious mischief after he broke a fence in the 2000 block of J Avenue. The man had been fleeing the scene of a domestic disturbance at a nearby home when he broke the fence while trying to climb over it.
Saturday, July 4
A man living on 34th Street reported that his neighbors were spray painting his house and had broken all of the windows out of his car. The man had also allegedly told neighbors that someone was living in his attic and picking fuzz off his blanket to make art. Officers arrived and found no damage to the property. The man admitted he may have been mistaken as he was drinking alcohol and taking prescription medication, but that it had all “seemed so real.” The man refused medical help, but a family member agreed to come and check on him.
A pickup parked in the 600 block of R Avenue was struck by an unknown object while the owners were at the Farmers Market. A fender was scraped causing minor damage.
Officers responded to the 900 block of 9th Street after a man reported his girlfriend was refusing to get out of his pickup. It was learned that the 2 had argued on Guemes Island and that the man had gotten the woman a motel room in Anacortes after she had demanded to leave the island. No crime had occurred and the woman got out of the truck after she said that she was satisfied that she had made the man miss the ferry back to Guemes.
A vehicle parked at a marina parking lot in the 1000 block of Market Street sustained a foot long dent to the driver’s door and fender after being struck by an unknown vehicle.
Sunday, July 5
A 24-year-old Moses Lake woman was arrested for drunk driving after an officer stopped the car she was driving for running a stop sign at 32nd Street and M Avenue. The woman’s movements were clumsy and she had watery eyes. She had also sprayed perfume in her vehicle in an attempt to mask the smell of alcohol. She admitted to drinking and officers found 2 opened bottles of hard liquor and some prescription pills in her car. She provided breath samples that were almost twice the legal limit. The woman was booked into jail.
A 17-year-old Anacortes boy was arrested after a witness saw him exit a pickup and carry two 18-packs of beer into the woods near the 2900 block of 17th Street. An officer located the beer which was still cold to the touch. The boy alleged that he had been in the downtown area when an unknown person had walked up and put the two packs of beer into the back of his pickup. The boy explained that he didn’t know what to do, so he drove away to hide the beer in the woods. The boy was referred to juvenile court for illegal possession of alcohol.
A 21-year-old Anacortes man was suspected of violating a domestic violence protection order by telephoning his ex-girlfriend. Efforts to locate the man at that time were unsuccessful and the man was issued a court summons for the violation.
Monday, July 6
Unknown suspects tried unsuccessfully to pry into a cash box at a berry stand in the 1200 block of Commercial Avenue. It also appeared that the suspects had used a piece of concrete to strike the box several times.
The owner of a home in the 800 block of H Avenue reported that her house had been “egged” for the second time.
A boat cooler was reported stolen from a yard in the 1100 block of 19th Street while the homeowners were away. There are no suspects.
A boat broker discovered a 37-year-old transient woman on board a 49-foot boat moored at a marina in the 1000 block of Q Avenue. The woman did not have permission to be on the boat. The woman said that she had been living on the boat for a few days and that she had entered it through an unlocked cabin door. A hatch on the boat was also found to be damaged. Although the woman claimed that she was interested in “buying” the approximate $400,000.00 boat, she was arrested and booked into jail on a felony investigation of boat/vehicle prowling.
A 16-year-old Anacortes boy was booked into juvenile detention on charges of theft and illegal possession of fireworks after he stole some non-prescription medication from a business in the 1500 block of Commercial Avenue. An employee had seen the boy flee the store and the police contacted him a couple of blocks away. When the boy was arrested, an officer located the fireworks inside of the boy’s backpack. The boy was already on probation from previous offenses.
A 13-year-old and two 15-year-old Anacortes boys were referred to juvenile court on malicious mischief charges after they had been seen tearing shingles off the roof of the Middle School. The boys told officers that they had climbed a tree to gain access to the roof.
Officers responded to a home in the 200 block of K Avenue after a woman reported that her ex-boyfriend had just fled after breaking down an exterior door. The ex-boyfriend had allegedly shown up at the house and was yelling from outside at the woman’s new boyfriend to get out. The ex-boyfriend reportedly kicked the front door a few times and then kicked in a side door to gain entry into the home. The ex then started to kick in a bedroom door where the woman and her new boyfriend had taken refuge prior to fleeing. Police went to the 21-year-old ex-boyfriend’s home in the 800 block of 29th Street where they heard a man’s voice inside of the apartment. The man’s mother answered the door and said her son was not home. She denied officers request to check for the man and the police then obtained a search warrant to check the home. The mother had also made a false call to 911 saying that her son was suicidal and at Deception Pass. Officers entered the house with the warrant and found the man upstairs. He was booked into jail for domestic violence burglary and his mother was cited for rendering criminal assistance.
Tuesday, July 7
A 21-speed-mountain bike valued at $300 was reported stolen from the bike rack in front of the Middle School. The victim’s mother later found the bicycle at an unknown location.
A woman who had gone to a home in the 1000 block of G Avenue to meet a dog that the current owner wanted to give away was bitten on the arm and thigh by the dog when she reached out to pet it. The woman sustained puncture wounds and swelling to those areas. The dog was quarantined after the dog owner was unable to provide rabies vaccination records. The dog owner was also cited for not having a valid dog license.
A 34-year-old Anacortes man was cited for violating a court order after he allegedly pulled up next to his estranged wife in her car at the Cap Sante lookout and then tried to block her vehicle when she went to leave. A court order prohibited the man from having contact with the woman.
A 37-year-old transient woman was charged with felony possession of stolen property after she allegedly stole a rubber inflatable boat and motor from the shoreline near 30th Street and W Avenue. The victim had spoken with the woman on the beach and when he returned a short time later, the boat was missing. The victim later saw the woman walking on the Tommy Thompson Trail and he checked and found the missing boat tied up nearby. The woman was contacted by police and she claimed that she had permission to take the boat. The victim said that the woman never had permission to take the boat.
Wednesday, July 8
An Anacortes woman reported receiving a suspicious phone call from an unknown man who said that he was trying to collect on a payday cash advance loan. The woman had never taken out a loan and had fortunately not given the caller any personal information. The man said that he would call back the next day, but he never did.
Someone smashed the window on a Honda Accord parked at Heart Lake and stole a purse from inside. The purse contained the victim’s ID, credit cards, approximately $20 in cash, and miscellaneous other items.
Thursday, July 9
An officer stopped a car driven by a 16-year-old Anacortes boy in the 3000 block of M Avenue for not having its taillights or headlights working. It was discovered that the boy did not have a valid driver’s license. As the boy pulled his student body card from his pocket, a baggy of suspected marijuana also fell out. The boy then handed an officer two more baggies of marijuana from his pants pocket. The boy said that he had just recently started smoking marijuana and that the two baggies of pot were a “gift” from a friend he declined to identify. A marijuana smoking pipe was also located inside of the car. The boy was arrested and referred to juvenile court for not having a valid driver’s license and possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
A mountain bike valued at $250 was reported stolen from an unlocked shed at a home in the 2500 block of W. 2nd Street.
A 21-speed mountain bike was stolen from where it was parked behind a business in the 3000 block of R Avenue. The bike had been left unsecured.
Anacortes Police assisted the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office is locating two teenaged Anacortes boys who had been reported throwing lit fireworks out of a pickup in the area of March’s Point. A large bag of miscellaneous fireworks were confiscated from the boys after they admitted to throwing the fireworks. They also admitted that their actions had been “stupid.”
Friday, July 10
A vehicle was found abandoned on Heart Lake Road after apparently striking a tree head on. The keys were still in the ignition and there were fresh skid marks on the road. Officers then received a phone call from a 17-year-old Anacortes girl who was the registered owner of the vehicle. The girl then returned to the accident scene where she claimed that she had swerved to avoid hitting a deer. The girl smelled of intoxicants, had watery bloodshot eyes, and her speech was slurred. The girl denied having been drinking prior to the accident, but did volunteer that she had drunk to the point of almost passing out the previous night. The girl performed poorly on field sobriety tests including providing a portable breath test that was over the legal limit for an adult. She was placed under arrest for drunk driving. She later provided two breath samples that were over the legal limit although she claimed her drinking had not affected her driving. She was cited for DUI and released to a sober adult.
A 15-speed mountain bike valued at $100 was reported stolen from a shed at a home in the 2300 block of 15th Street. There was no sign of forced entry into the shed, and the victim said he was unsure if the shed had been locked.
A 46-year-old Anacortes man was transported by an aid car to the emergency room after crashing his bicycle into a telephone pole in the 1000 block of 8th Street. The man had a cut on his nose and possible head injuries and he smelled strongly of alcohol. The man told an officer that he had drunk “12 beers.” Police took possession of the man’s bike for safekeeping while he was at the hospital. The man went to the police station the next morning to collect his bike and was taken into custody because he had 3 felony warrants for his arrest out of Snohomish County. He was booked into the county jail.