Law Enforcement
■ July 30 - An officer was requested to do a welfare check on an individual who had contacted the hospital in Medford for help as they were experiencing a mental health crisis. Upon arriving at the residence in Colby, the officer spoke with the individual who explained that they did not have the resources to get to the hospital to self-commit and were frustrated with the treatments they had been receiving from the hospital’s staff. They asked if the officer could take them to the hospital. The officer explained that they could not, but could try to help them contact a crisis line.
The individual did not want to speak with the crisis line at that time, believing they would not help and asked the officer to leave. The officer notified a Clark County crisis worker about the incident.
Later that day the officer received another welfare check on the individual who had called the hospital again, and displayed concerning behavior towards themselves. The individual was unwilling to engage with the officer who they had spoken with earlier, but was willing to speak to another officer. The person admitted they just wanted to go to the hospital and Central EMS was called to their location to transport them.
By the time Central EMS arrived the individual seemed to have calmed down and stated they no longer wanted to go to the hospital. They stated they had called a family member to take them to the hospital for assistance. The Crisis worker was contacted and spoke with the individual.
The individual was given their contact and directed to call if anything about their plan changed.
■ ■ July 31 - An officer received a complaint from the Colby DPW concerning a soft sided storage structure on a property located in Colby. The officer was requested to mail a warning letter to the property owner for removal of the structure, as it seemed to violate a city ordinance prohibiting accessory and garage structures to be constructed of tent-like materials or coverall plastic/rubber materials.
■ ■ August 1 - An officer completed a follow up on an assault report that had taken place the night of July 27 at an establishment in Colby. The officer met with an individual suspected to be involved in the incident. The individual stated they had been in the bathroom at the establishment when another individual opened the door and began making fun of them. The individual said a physical alteration occurred between them and admitted to throwing the first punch. They also stated they had been drinking that night, which violated the bond conditions of an open case they had through Clark county, stating absolute sobriety. Charges of misdemeanor battery and bail jumping will be referred to Clark County DA’s office.
■ ■ August 1 - An officer met with an individual at the Colby-Abbotsford Police Department in regards to a threat complaint. The individual stated they were going to visit their sister on August 2, in Chicago, who was getting a divorce from her husband. The individual stated that the husband was mad that their sister had been text messaging them, and that he had told the individual that they needed to go to hell. The individual stated they did not feel comfortable around their sister’s husband and took his words as a threat.
The officer informed the individual on the process of getting a restraining order and if further problems occurred when visiting their sister, they should contact the Chicago Police Department.
■ ■ August 2 - An officer received a criminal damage complaint to an incident that had taken place on a section of roadway marked as closed due to highway construction in progress. The officer spoke with an employee of the company contracted to work on the section on S. Division St. in Colby, who explained that a truck had driven through freshly poured concrete and provided a picture of the damage done. Repairs were already being made to the roadwork that had been damaged when the officer arrived. The officer then spoke with the inspector on scene who provided the contact for someone that could give the officer more information in regards to the damage as well as a witness who had been working on a house across the street when the incident occurred.
The witness stated that they went to look after they heard a truck that sounded like it was stuck and saw a blue F150 stuck in a section of wet concrete. The truck backed up, then hit the gas to get out only to immediately get stuck in the next section. The witness stated it looked like the truck put it in 4- wheel drive to get out of that section and continued driving northbound.
The officer was connected to a representative of Chippewa Concrete Services who provided the contact of another witness to the incident as well as the contact of the President of Chippewa Concrete Services who could provide the information regarding the cost to repair the damage done.
The officer spoke with the second witness who stated they had been behind the truck driving north on the shoulder of the road when the truck had turned onto the portion of the roadway in-between the orange barrels and then got stuck in the concrete. They verified the first witness's account and stated they had turned around and flagged down a construction worker to report what had happened. They provided the license plate of the truck.
The officer was able to get the contact information of the owner of the truck after running the license plate. The owner stated that they had thought the concrete was dry so decided to drive down the northbound lane of the roadway instead of on the shoulder of the road. The driver said they hit the wet concrete, became stuck, panicked, and put the truck in 4-wheel drive to get out and left. They stated they had believed they were allowed to go through the section closed to thru traffic because they lived nearby. The officer explained that only the two houses in the construction area were allowed to travel on the shoulder of the road and no one else and that they would be mailed a citation for damage to public property. They were also informed that an estimate for repairs would be sent to the court for restitution.
■ ■ August 3 - An officer took a suspicious activity report from an individual who stated that an unfamiliar vehicle, occupied by two unidentified males, pulled into their driveway in Colby and sat there for some time with the occupants appearing to look towards the house before leaving.
A few minutes later the truck showed back up with only one male inside and again sat in the driveway, the individual stated that the driver noticed them on the phone and attempted to wave them over to the vehicle. At that time, a third party that the individual had called to come due to the situation, pulled into the individual’s driveway. The vehicle backed out of the driveway and took off northbound. The third party followed the truck to a business where the second unidentified male met with and got in the vehicle. The vehicle attempted to leave, but was stopped by the third party, who waited for the officer to arrive.
The officer arrived and met with the occupants of the vehicle who stated the driver had believed that he was meeting an unidentified woman at the address of the individual who had called in the report.
The driver explained that they had been talking to the woman over social media, who asked them to buy some prepaid Xbox live cards for her kids and to meet her at the address given.
The driver stated they did not know how to purchase the cards and was going to pick her up and take her to purchase them. The driver explained that they had never met the woman they were talking to, and had taken their friend with them to the house where they waited for the woman.
The driver said they saw the individual on the phone and didn’t think they could get their attention, so they dropped their friend off somewhere to eat and tried to call the woman, but found the line busy, which led them to believe the individual was the woman they were supposed to meet. The driver went back to the address alone, thinking the individual would likely be done with their phone call by then. They stated that the woman they had been talking to said she would let them live with her. The driver stated that when they saw the third party pull into the driveway they panicked thinking it was a significant other of the woman they had been talking to and left.
The driver showed the officer the messages they had been receiving from the unidentified woman. The officer explained to the driver that they were being scammed by the profile in order to get prepaid gift cards from them, and they didn’t live at the address given. The officer also explained how the situation may have looked to the individual that did live at the house and gave them a warning not to return to that address. The driver seemed embarrassed and apologetic about the situation and promised they wouldn’t return and would block the scammer’s profile.
The officer advised the complainant to call the CAPD if they saw the driver or anything else suspicious show up again.
■ ■ August 3 - An officer patrolling northbound on Highway 13 in Abbotsford passed an individual walking they recognized from numerous prior contacts. The individual had an open Clark County case where a body only warrant was issued. After confirming the individual had an active warrant, the officer went to their residence and met with the individual. When told of the warrant, the individual said that their lawyer had gotten that taken care of.
The individual was placed under arrest and was searched. A clear plastic bag with black spades on it was found in the right cargo pocket of their shorts, which was confiscated to be tested. The individual stated they never used any drugs and said other people use the pants. When asked who else used the pants, the individual stated it didn’t matter. The individual was transported to the Clark County Jail. The confiscated bag was tested, the results was presumptively positive for cocaine, and a citation for possession of drug paraphernalia will be mailed to the individual.
■ ■ August 4 - An officer was flagged down by a resident of Colby, who stated that every weekend they find garbage and broken bottles in the narrow alley between their residence and an establishment next door. They showed the officer the alleyway and said they wanted the behavior to stop. The officer told the complainant that they would speak to the owners of the establishment and to call the CAPD if the behavior continued.
The officer spoke to the owner about the complaint and showed them the alleyway in question. The officer warned the owner that they needed to make sure the outside premise was cleaned and open containers of any kind were not allowed outside of their business. The owner said they would.
■ ■ August 4 - An officer was alerted by a concerned citizen about a female laying on an exterior deck in Abbotsford, that appeared to either be in medical distress or under the influence of a substance. Two officers located the reported female on the deck who was in conversation with a male individual on the street.
One officer spoke with the male, who stated he had been in an argument with the female after she had found conversations he had been having with other women on his phone. He said the argument was not physical.
The second officer spoke with the female. She said she was okay and just relaxing outside on the deck. She stated that she and the male had gotten into an argument, which she started, after she located other women on his phone. She confirmed that the arguing with the male individual was only verbal. She stated he had never threatened her and she was not fearful of him. She mentioned that he had been physical with her in the past which had been addressed by law enforcement.
The officers learned that the male individual was on probation, with a rule to have no contact with the female individual. The officer called probation, who advised they would not be placing a hold on the male, but would like him to leave the residence and report to his agent in the morning. The male was advised of his directive by probation and both individuals were ordered to separate themselves from each other. The male left without incident.
■ ■ August 8 - Two officers were investigating a welfare check/disturbance in Abbotsford when they observed smoke and an odor of burnt marijuana near an open garage. An officer approached the garage and made contact with an individual inside. The officer asked the individual where the marijuana was. The individual hesitated before picking up a small “roach” from the ground. The officer informed the individual they would be seizing the roach and if the substance inside tested positive for marijuana, they would receive a citation in the mail. The roach was tested presumptively positive for THC. A citation for possession of THC/marijuana will be mailed to the individual.
