Several witnesses reported a woman who appeared to be highly intoxicated was pushing a child in a stroller in the area of the 1900 block of Skyline Way on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 5. The woman reportedly had fallen down several times causing the stroller containing the child to upend and the child to scream and cry. When an officer arrived, witnesses were holding the one-year-old child while the woman who had been pushing the stroller stumbled away. Witnesses told police that the woman had pushed away from several people who stopped and tried to help her. The woman again fell down repeatedly causing her to scrape her face and split her lip. The woman was extremely intoxicated and was identified as the child’s grandmother and legal guardian. She said that “nothing” was going on and that she was just taking her granddaughter for a walk. The child was taken into protective custody and later released to a Child Protective Dept. worker.
Here are some of the other cases Anacortes Police worked on this week.
Friday, Oct. 4
5:48 pm. A 39-year-old man was booked into jail on investigation of domestic violence arson charges after he allegedly threw some burning material inside of a car parked at a residence in the 1300 block of Erie Avenue. The man’s 32-year-old girlfriend was sitting in the driver’s seat of the car and a small fire then started on the back seat. A witness was able to wrap a towel around his hand and extinguish the fire. Witnesses reported that the couple had been arguing, yelling, and drinking all day. Witnesses also reported that the man had been throwing items at the window of his girlfriend’s car earlier trying to break the glass. The couple had fled when police arrived, but officers located the woman driving car with the man inside on the road to Little Cranberry Lake. As the man was being placed under arrest, the woman ran into the woods but officers were able to locate her after a short time. The woman admitted to arguing with her boyfriend and a fire being started in her car, but she claimed that she “didn’t know” how it started. There were charred items visible in the back seat. The woman smelled strongly of intoxicants but she denied drinking or driving the car, even though the officer informed her he had just seen her driving. The woman was placed under arrest and charged with drunk driving and driving with a suspended license after she refused the breath test. She was booked into jail. The man admitted to arguing with his girlfriend, but he denied starting the fire inside of the car.
5:48 pm. An Anacortes woman reported that she had accidentally left her purse at a self-check register of a grocery store in the 900 block of 11th Street. When the woman retuned to the store, her purse was gone and store employees informed her that no one had turned it in as found. The purse contained the woman’s ID and several credit cards.
Saturday, Oct. 5
1:24 am. Police arrived at a home in the 1300 block of 11th Street regarding a noise complaint and saw several people run inside of the house and turn the lights off. Officers recognized some of the people as being under 21 years old, could smell the odor of intoxicants coming from the residence, and heard people whispering inside of the house. After repeatedly knocking, a very intoxicated 23-year-old man answered the door but he denied police to enter and look for underage drinkers. Police then obtained a search warrant, entered the house, and found a 19-year-old Anacortes woman and a 20-year-old man hiding in a closet and a 19-year-old Oak Harbor man amongst a group of adults. The three underage people all exhibited the effects of drinking alcohol and were arrested and issued MIP citations. The 23-year-old man was issued a citation for furnishing alcohol to minors.
Sunday, Oct. 6
12:11 am. A 23-year-old Bellingham man was booked into jail on felony assault charges after he allegedly pointed a loaded gun at his brother at the brother’s home in the 1500 block of Burrows Court. The two men had been drinking heavily earlier and had gotten into an argument about the suspect brother making derogatory remarks about the military of which the victim brother was a member. The argument escalated into a wrestling match between the brothers. During the wrestling match, the suspect brother allegedly pulled a pistol from his waistband and pointed it at the victim brother’s head. The victim brother told police that he then kneed his brother in the head and disarmed him. Police obtained a search warrant and recovered a 9mm pistol from the residence.
4:50 pm. The owner of a business in the 2700 block of Commercial Avenue reported that he suspected two unknown people who had been browsing in his store of stealing his Samsung smart phone. The phone had been left on a table where the two people had been shopping and was discovered missing after the couple left. The possible suspects were described as a black male with tattoos on his eyes and cheeks and an older white female who left in a white Nissan Sentra.
Tuesday, Oct. 8
3:35 am. Police are looking for a 24-year-old Anacortes man after he allegedly struggled with a woman and stole her iPod at her home in the 1200 block of 29th Street. The woman told police that the man was a friend of hers who she had been encouraging to quit his illegal drug use. The woman said that she woke up in the middle of the night with the man standing over her yelling profanities. She said the man was “extremely high” and that she told him to get out while trying to push him out her door. The woman struggled with the man in the doorway and she was scratched and pushed to the ground. The man did leave but not before taking the woman’s iPod that was near the door. The man faces possible burglary charges.
3:20 pm. Police responded to the report of a man hitting, pushing, and throwing a woman to the ground in the 3300 block of T Avenue. The man then left the scene driving a pickup. An officer located the woman walking on T Avenue and noticed that she was crying and had scratches on her neck. The woman said that the man was her 25-year-old boyfriend and that she had just told him she wanted to break up and tried to walk away from him. The woman said that the man told her that he was “not going to allow her to break up” with him and that he began to pull her hair and clothing in an effort to force her into his pickup. The man then allegedly threw the woman to the ground and then picked her up and tried to carry her to his truck. An officer stopped the pickup as it was driving away and detained the man. It was learned that he had four warrants for his arrest from previous DUI and driving with a suspended license charges. The man said that he and the woman had argued and that he had hit her in the face but had not intended to hurt her. He also said that they had “fallen” to the ground. He was arrested and booked into jail on new charges of domestic violence assault and driving with a suspended license as well as the warrants.
3:52 pm. A resident who runs a business out of his home in the 1500 block of Georgia Avenue reported that three packages that were placed out for delivery truck pick-up had been stolen. The packages contained a pond water pump, black PVC plumbing parts, and two digital water testers. The loss was estimated at $1,200. The victim contacted the shipping company who told him the packages had not been picked up.
Thursday, Oct. 10
The Anacortes Police Department is investigating two reports of vandalism to several of their police cars. The first occurred in the early morning hours of Thursday. Officers discovered several police vehicles including marked patrol cars and the animal control officer vehicle parked in the police department parking lot had slashed tires. The second incident occurred late Thursday night or early Friday morning. Officers discovered that some of the vehicles had their tires slashed a second time. A K9 officer from the Mount Vernon Police Department responded and tracked the suspect to the west of the department, however no one was located. Officers are reviewing video, physical evidence, and questioning persons of interest in the case. The department had a similar incident occur on September 2nd. Damage to the cars was in excess of $3,000. The men and women of the Anacortes Police Department are offering a $250 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person(s) responsible for the damage to the patrol vehicles. Damaging emergency response vehicles is a felony in Washington.
4:53 pm. A resident of the 2600 block of W. 3rd Street reported that a utility company mailed her payment check back to her because she forgot to sign it. She later found the returned envelope in her mailbox but the envelope had been opened and the check was missing. At this time, there has been no fraudulent attempt to cash the check.
5:29 pm. Two employees of an assisted living facility in the 1100 block of 27th Street had their iPhones stolen while at work. One phone was stolen off of the employee’s desk, and the other was taken from the kitchen. An officer spoke with a third employee who had been mentioned as a possible suspect, but that employee denied any involvement.
8:05 pm. A woman reported that her former roommate, a 23-year-old Oak Harbor man, had come to her apartment in the 800 block of 29th Street to collect some belongings. The man then allegedly began to yell at and verbally berate the woman after she told him that she did not want a relationship with him. The woman told the man to leave and he responded by shoving her. The man also allegedly picked up a wooden and ceramic flower pot and threw it at the woman’s head narrowly missing her. The pot hit a wall and shattered. The man fled but was caught a short distance away by police. He was booked into jail on charges of domestic violence assault and also for having a warrant from a previous reckless driving charge.
Friday, Oct. 11
8:42 am. A 36-year-old Anacortes man and a 25-year-old Anacortes man were both issued citations for criminal trespass after the owner of a home in the 1000 block of 16th Street found them sleeping in a sleeping bag in her garage. The homeowner did not know the men.