Police responded Friday night, July 5, to a fireworks complaint at a home in the 2900 block of Oakes Avenue after witnesses reported seeing several aerial fireworks. Officers arrived and found a large gathering of people and saw two people who appeared to be carrying fireworks walk inside the home. An officer saw several bottle rockets on a table near a group of people and asked who they belonged to. The officer received various responses including there were "no fireworks on the table" and "I think they are yours officer." When asked again, a 34-year-old man said that they were his. The man was advised that he was under arrest and that he would be receiving a citation for illegal possession/discharge of fireworks. Other people at the home angrily expressed their opinions that officers were "out of line" for charging someone with a fireworks violation and that the man "couldn't be arrested for fireworks." The man was issued a criminal citation and released at the scene.
Here are some of the other cases Anacortes Police worked on last week.
Friday, July 5
5:55 pm. Two Seattle men, age 30 and 34, were issued criminal citations for consuming alcohol in violation of park rules at Whistle Lake. An officer on foot patrol at the lake had seen one of the men holding an open can of beer and the other man had an open can of beer in his backpack that he had initially tried to hide. The men readily admitted that they had been drinking in violation of the posted park regulations.
Saturday, July 6
12:13 am. An officer observed a car repeatedly swerve over the fog line and driving at erratic speeds on Oakes Avenue. The officer stopped the car and then saw the female driver rummaging through a pile of paperwork inside the vehicle. The officer had to knock on the vehicle window to get the woman's attention. The woman then opened the car door and stuck out her foot at which time the officer noticed she was barefoot. The woman also smelled of intoxicants and had watery bloodshot eyes. The woman told the officer that she didn't have her driver's license, but that she had the number memorized. When asked for her name, the woman recited her license number. The woman was eventually identified as a 30-year-old Anacortes resident who initially told the officer that she had not been drinking. She then claimed that she had "one beer a long time ago." The woman failed field sobriety tests after declining to put on her shoes. The woman protested when she was placed under arrest and jerked her arm away from the officer before she began crying hysterically. She was taken to the police station for processing where she pointed to a floor drain and asked if she could "pee down the drain." She was encouraged and allowed to use the bathroom instead before providing breath samples that were two and a half times the legal limit. The woman was issued a citation charging her with drunk driving while she yelled at the officer that there was "no reason to treat her like a criminal." She was released to her ex-husband.
8:26 am. A 21-speed Next brand mountain bike valued at $200 was stolen from a site at an RV park in the 4700 block of Fidalgo Bay Road. The victim discovered that the unknown thief had left a Giant brand "Rincon" mountain bike at his site in place of his stolen bike. The Giant brand bike was discovered to have been stolen from another space at the RV park and it was speculated that the thief had discarded the first bike in favor of the second bike.
11:54 am. A collector's license plate was stolen from a classic car that was parked in the 1300 block of 9th Street. The plate had been inside of the unlocked car, but the car had been covered by a tarp. The thief is unknown at this time.
7:33 pm. An officer arrested a 21-year-old Anacortes woman after he saw her walking in the 2900 block of Commercial Avenue and confirmed that she had a warrant for her arrest from a previous theft charge. When the purse the woman was carrying was searched, the officer located plastic baggies containing suspected heroin and a spoon containing a tar like substance also believed to be heroin. The woman said that the baggies actually contained a mixture of sugar and coffee designed to look like heroin that she planned to try to sell. The jail declined to accept the woman on her warrant due to overcrowding, but she does face possible felony drug charges pending the return of lab results on the tarry substance.
7:57 pm. A 20-year-old Guemes Island man was arrested for allegedly prowling a boat moored at a marina in the 1000 block of Q Avenue. Port security had caught the man on a boat that did not belong to him although the man claimed the boat belonged to his "uncle." The "uncle's" name did not match the owner of the boat's name and police learned that the man had a recent conviction for burglary and theft of a firearm. The phone number the man provided for his "uncle" was also a disconnected number. The man admitted to boarding the boat and rummaging around trying to "find the key." The man had a screwdriver in his possession. The man was issued a criminal citation for Vehicle Prowling in the Second Degree and was also trespassed from Port of Anacortes properties.
10:05 pm. A 36-year-old Bellingham woman was charged with assault after she allegedly punched an Oak Harbor woman in the face while they were at a bar in the 7600 block of State Route 20. The victim had a large abrasion to the side of her face and the beginning of bruising on her cheek and eye socket. The victim's eye glasses were also allegedly broken when she was assaulted. The victim said that the suspect had punched her for no reason. The suspect claimed that she had "not touched" the other woman although she had blood on her shirt. Both women were intoxicated. The suspect was issued a citation charging her with assault and malicious mischief for breaking the glasses. She was released at the scene.
Monday, July 8
2:47 pm. A resident of the 1800 block of Lea Place reported that his cat had been shot with a BB gun and seriously injured after previously receiving a "death threat" note towards the cat. A week previously the cat owner had discovered that someone had tied a note around his cat's neck that said "Stay at home and live." The cat was taken to the vet where it was discovered the BB had penetrated the animal's chest. The cat's owner had no idea who would have shot his pet as he had not received any complaints about the cat previously.
4:27 pm. An unlocked truck parked in the 1400 block of Kellogg Avenue was prowled during nighttime hours. The owner discovered that someone had rummaged through the interior of the vehicle and stole a cell phone valued at $600 and a small amount of loose change.
6:00 pm. A 21-year-old Anacortes man was arrested behind a business in the 2400 block of Commercial Avenue for having five outstanding warrants. The warrants stemmed from previous charges of DUI, theft, driving while suspended, and possession of illegal fireworks. He was booked into the county jail.
8:46 pm. An officer contacted a 21-year-old Anacortes man walking through the lower parking lot at the high school and placed him under arrest on an outstanding warrant form a previous possession of drug paraphernalia charge. The man told the officer that "a lot of drug paraphernalia" would be found in the backpack he was carrying as he had last used heroin a couple of days earlier. The officer then located syringes, blades, a plastic tube containing dark residue, baggies, cotton swabs, and foil with dark residue. All of these items were consistent with heroin usage. The man was issued a citation with a new charge of possession of drug paraphernalia and released on the warrant as the jail would not take him for booking due to overcrowding.
Tuesday, July 9
1:19 am. The mother of a 15-year-old Anacortes girl reported that her daughter was intoxicated and "out of control." Police located the girl in an alley near the 2200 block of Q Avenue and she smelled of intoxicants. The girl admitted to drinking at a house outside of the city limits on Thompson Road and that a woman at the home had provided the alcohol in exchange for babysitting services. The girl provided a portable breath test sample that confirmed her alcohol consumption, but she claimed, "I'm not that drunk." The girl was arrested and booked into juvenile detention on the MIP charge. A 23-year-old Fidalgo Island woman was also later sent a criminal citation charging her with furnishing alcohol to a minor.
4:38 am. A resident of the 2000 block of R Avenue reported that his 19-year-old stepson had returned home drunk and that they had gotten into an argument. The stepson also had three warrants for his arrest. Officers arrested the stepson on his warrants and observed that he smelled strongly of intoxicants and his eyes were bloodshot. The stepson said he just had "one" drink but that it had been "90% moonshine." He provided a portable breath test sample that was over .170. The stepson was issued a new criminal citation charging him with underage drinking and released on the warrants as the jail would not accept him for booking.
Wednesday, July 10
10:45 am. A woman living on a boat at a marina in the 3000 block of Oakes Avenue reported that she and her 24-year-old boyfriend had been arguing earlier and that the disagreement had then turned physical. The woman said that she had thrown some popcorn at the man and that he had retaliated by throwing a container of salsa at her. The woman said that she then stepped towards the man and he reacted by pushing her and punching her in the face. The woman's eye was swollen and discolored and she had a scratch on her nose. The woman said that when she told the man she was calling the police, he threw a duffle bag that contained most of her belongings overboard. The Duffle bag containing approximately $700 worth of items sank before the woman could grab it. The man fled before police arrived and officers were unable to locate him that day. He was later issued a court summons for domestic violence assault and malicious mischief.
Thursday, July 11
4:23 am. An officer stopped a vehicle on State Route 20 for speeding. The driver jerked the car to the shoulder so violently that the officer was concerned that the vehicle would wreck. The driver, a 33-year-old LaConner man, smelled strongly of intoxicants, had slow slurred speech, and fumbled for his driver's license. The man said that he "just lived around the corner" and "wanted to go home." The man almost fell when he exited the vehicle and had to lean against it to maintain his balance. The man failed field sobriety tests during which he told the officer, "Ask my grandmother. She tests me all the time." The man was placed under arrest for drunk driving and processed at the police station where he provided breath samples that were almost three times the legal limit. He was issued a citation for DUI and released to his grandmother.
9:44 am. The 31-year-old owner of a dog in the 2200 block of 30th Street was issued a criminal citation for having her "dog at large" and her five-year-old lab will be deemed a potentially dangerous dog after the animal bit a neighbor man in the leg. The dog had run up to the neighbor barking and growling aggressively as the man was exiting his vehicle in his driveway. The man tried to jump back into his truck to avoid the dog, but the dog bit him in the back of his leg causing a puncture wound and bleeding. The dog also barked and growled aggressively at the Animal Control Officer while she was speaking with the dog owner. Since the dog's rabies vaccine had expired, it was also quarantined for ten days.
2:30 pm. Police are investigating the theft of a vintage Fender guitar amplified form a home in the 4000 block of Broadview Drive. There was no sign of forced entry into the home and police are in the process of speaking with several people who had recent access to the home.