KICKING AND SCREAMING
Gallup, June 30
A Churchrock man was getting booked into the Gallup Detox Center when he allegedly became violent with the officers and was arrested for battery upon a peace officer.
On June 30, around 2:36 pm, Gallup Police Officer Jerald Watchman was transporting an intoxicated man to the Gallup Detox Center when another man at the detox center lashed out at him and other officers.
Officer Daniel Brown was escorting Elroy Johnson, who began yelling obscenities. The officers told Johnson, 43, to wait outside a door, but he continued to yell at Brown and Public Service Officer Wilma Seciwa.
The detox center’s employees tried to keep things orderly, but after one of the employees told another man to step forward, Johnson quickly stepped toward the door and began shouting in the employee’s face. According to Watchman’s report, Johnson would not wait his turn.
Brown and Watchman grabbed Johnson and told him to calm down and that he needed to listen. Johnson allegedly looked like he was about to kick the officers, and that’s when Watchman grabbed him by the wrist and told him to stop. He also stepped on the man’s right foot in order to try and stop Johnson from kicking.
Watchman eventually took his foot off Johnson’s, and that’s when the man kicked the officer multiple times. Johnson hit Watchman in the right knee and calf. According to the report, Johnson’s foot left dust marks on Watchman’s pants.
Watchman took Johnson to his patrol car, and he was arrested for battery upon a peace officer. He was transported to the McKinley County Detention Center. Johnson’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 13.
STOLEN VEHICLE
Gallup, June 28
A man tried to tell officers that he was borrowing a reportedly stolen car from his friend and that he didn’t know it was stolen, but police didn’t believe his story.
On June 28, around 9:49 am, McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Frank Villa was dispatched to ABQ Recycling, 61 Coal Basin Rd., because a stolen vehicle had been found. A caller told Metro Dispatch that he was leaving his job when he noticed his mom’s recently stolen vehicle driving past. The caller said he followed the car to ABQ Recycling, and it drove into the scrap yard.
According to the victim, the car was stolen on June 25.
When Villa got to the scene, he found the car in the scrap yard. Workers were unloading scrap metal from the car. Villa was able to meet with the driver, who was identified as Benjamin Welch.
Villa asked Welch, 35, to turn off the vehicle, get out of it, and turn over the keys, which he did. When Villa ran the car’s plates, he confirmed that the vehicle had been stolen.
Welch told Villa that he’d borrowed the car from his friend so that he could haul some scrap metal. Welch claimed he didn’t know the vehicle was stolen.
The vehicle was released back to the owner, and Welch was arrested for receiving or transferring a stolen vehicle. His trial is scheduled for July 11.
STOLEN CREDIT CARD
Gallup, June 24
Christopher Begay was caught by police after he allegedly stole a woman’s purse from her car and tried to use her credit card at Dollar General.
On June 24, around 5:55 pm, Lt. Steven Collins of the Gallup Police was dispatched to We Care Agency, 501 S. Second St., because a woman had called Metro Dispatch and said her credit card was stolen from her car.
When Collins met with the victim, she said that her car had been broken into while she was working at the senior center. She said she didn’t know if her car had been unlocked, but that her bank had called and said her credit card was used at Dollar General, 805 S. Second St. She said she was missing a brown and orange purse, along with the items in it, which included three credit cards, her driver’s license, her social security card, and her Sam’s Club card.
Collins drove to Dollar General to see if he could see the security footage of the suspect using the victim’s credit card. When he got to the store, an employee was able to hand over the card. He said a man, who was later identified as Begay, 30, came into the store and tried to buy some energy drinks and a cellphone with the card.
The employee said Begay tried to use the card three times before he took it from him and Begay ended up leaving the store. When Collins was able to look at the surveillance video, he saw a man wearing all black.
According to his report, Collins realized that he’d seen the suspect around the 700 south block of Second Street while he was driving to Dollar General. Collins got back into his patrol car and was able to track Begay down.
Collins found Begay with a red North Face bag that had an orange and brown purse in it. When Collins mentioned a burglary to Begay, he denied any involvement, and said he had just found the purse.
Begay tried to move away from Collins, but he was able to handcuff him. Begay’s hands began to bleed, and he said he’d suffered a bicycle injury recently.
An ambulance was called so that Begay’s hands could be looked at. He was transported to the Gallup Indian Medical Center.
The bag was returned to the victim. Begay was charged with theft of a credit card. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 13.
PAINTING A HOUSE
Gallup, June 14
On June 14, around 9:27 pm, Gallup Police Officers Richard Rangel III and Dominic Molina were dispatched to 601 Pershing Ave. because a woman who was inside the residence wasn’t supposed to be there.
The woman was Danielle Kinsel, and when the officers got to the residence, she told them that she lived at the house, and that her father owned it. She was painting the house, and she said she’d been hired to do so.
Rangel called the calling party, who owned the home. The caller stated that her neighbors had told her that Kinsel was at her house. The homeowner said she’d evicted her former tenets in April, although Kinsel was not one of them and she didn’t know who she was. She said she only knew Kinsel’s name because her neighbors gave it to her.
The homeowner said she hadn’t hired anyone to do any work on the house, and that nobody was supposed to be there.
When Rangel ran Kinsel’s name by Metro Dispatch, they informed him that she did have a warrant out for her arrest. He transported Kinsel to the McKinley County Adult Detention Center where he charged her with a previous warrant and breaking and entering. Kinsel’s preliminary hearing was on July 6.
Staff Reports
