Law Enforcement
_ July 17 - An officer was dispatched to a Colby gas station in reference to a gas drive-off. The officer met with an employee who said the driver of a vehicle had pumped $63.21 worth of gas and then drove off without paying for it. The license plate came as registered to someone living in Illinois. The owner was sent a letter giving him until Aug. 20 to pay for the fuel.
_ July 20 - An officer investigated possible ordinance violations at a house on North Division Street in Colby and at another on North Second Street in Abbotsford. At the Colby house, the officer saw two vehicles with tall grass growing around their tires and blocks behind the rear tires of one vehicle. The vehicles did not appear to have moved in awhile. The same two vehicles were seen in the same spot on July 6. At the Abbotsford residence, the officer saw a vehicle with no rear license plate and tall grass growing around it. The license plate was expired as of May 20. It had not moved since the last the time officer saw it on July 7.
Photographs were taken of the vehicles, and warning letters were sent to the property owners.
_ July 20 - An officer was dispatched to Colby in reference to a stolen vehicle. The officer met with the someone who had been working with the carnival at Cheese Days. He said someone also working at the carnival had borrowed his truck on July 16 and was expected to bring it back by the following day. The complainant said the worker told him he wanted to meet up with his girlfriend, who was coming from Milwaukee and meeting him halfway. He said he tried called the worker several times, but the worker has not returned his calls. The complainant said the worker is from the Milwaukee area and has been with the carnival since July 4.
The missing vehicle is a white Chevrolet Avalanche with gray fenders. On July 21, the officer called the worker who had taken the truck, but no one answered, so he left a voicemail.
_ July 21 - An officer was on patrol when he ran the license plate of a vehicle traveling on Spruce Street. The registered owner of the vehicle came back as not having a valid license, so the officer pulled the vehicle over on Hiline Avenue. The officer met with the driver and identified him and his two passengers. One of the passengers had a warrant out of Taylor County for failure to appear in court for operating without a valid license (second offense). Dispatch confirmed that the driver did not have a valid license. The driver was cited for driving without a license and the passenger was arrested and taken to the Taylor County line, where he was handed over to a county deputy.
_ July 22 - An officer was patrolling Shortner Park after 1 a.m. when he noticed a vehicle parked there after the park’s 10 p.m. closing time. The officer met with the driver and her passenger, and he could smell marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. The driver admitted there was marijuana in her vehicle but would not say where it was. Dispatch reported that the driver did not have a valid license. The officer had the driver and passenger exit the vehicle, and he searched them both. Inside the passenger’s sweatshirt pocket was a vape pen with brown liquid inside. A pink and white box was also found in his front pocket with a marijuana leaf on it. A search of the vehicle uncovered additional vape cartridges and two ziplock bags with marijuana inside.
Because the driver did not have a valid license, she had to call her mother for a ride home. The contents of the vape cartridges tested positive for marijuana. The driver was cited for possession of marijuana and paraphernalia, and the passenger was cited for possession of paraphernalia.
_ July 22 - An officer was parked alongside STH 13 in Abbotsford when he noticed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed. He used his radar to clock the vehicle going 39 miles per hour in a 25 mph zone. Another officer parked nearby entered the roadway with his squad and pulled the vehicle over near East Linden Street. Officers met with the driver, and identified her with a Minnesota driver’s license. While speaking to the driver, one of the officers could smell the slight odor of alcohol. When asked, the driver claimed she had one glass of wine with dinner several hours earlier. The officer noticed her speech was slightly slurred and her eyes were glossy.
The officer asked the driver to do field sobriety tests, and at first, she was reluctant because she said she had a history with law enforcement and did not trust them. Eventually, she agreed to do the tests. She had trouble maintaining her balance during the tests and showed other signs of intoxication. She also consented to a preliminary breath test, but could not provide an adequate breath sample.
Asked again how much she had to drink, she said she had two drinks with dinner. The driver was placed under arrest on suspicion of drunk driving. She was transported to the police station, where she refused to provide an evidentiary blood draw. She was cited for speeding (11-15 mph over) and driving under the influence. She was then released to her sister.
