BROKEN CAR WINDOW
Tse Bonito, July 27

A woman exited her residence at Tse Bonito Trailer Park early in the morning when she saw the rear window of her Kia Optima had been shattered.

When McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy M.E. Harvey arrived at the scene, he verified the damage to the rear window, with a red rock on the right-hand side of the vehicle’s dashboard. The victim said she heard a noise outside between 3 and 4 am, but did not see anything. She was not aware of the damage until she was preparing to leave that morning at about 8 am.

There were no items taken or any other damages. No other information was available.

AXE (HANDLE) SWINGER
Thoreau, July 26

McKinley County Sheriff’s Sgt. Elreno Henio was dispatched to the Red Mesa Express, 119 Hwy. 371, after a call came in about a young Native American male wearing all black clothing and swinging an axe handle and damaging the property.

The cashier on duty said the man had walked up to the front of the store carrying the handle when he suddenly got very angry. He hit the glass door, causing it to crack, and then hit a plastic trash can next to the door. He walked toward the store dumpster and started to hit it as well before the handle broke, at which point he left the premises headed in a northwesterly direction.

There was a name of a potential suspect given to Henio, and an attempt-to-locate was issued with no success. The investigation is ongoing.

DISTANCE DOLLARS?
Gallup, July 23

The McKinley County Sheriff’s Office received a request to file a report from a local court employee stating her grandmother is sending money to an unidentified individual she met on social media, adding she has already sent over $10,000.

Deputy Paul Davis, Jr. met the grandmother in question and verified the information, but was told she did not want to file a report. Davis referred this information to the caller,  and also suggested she seek a power of attorney both with the local District Attorney as well as the Attorney General’s Office in Albuquerque.

No other information about the case or the recipient of the funds was available.

STOLEN SOCKET SET
Prewitt, July 22

A man from Silver City, N.M. returned to his property in Prewitt and found the passenger window of his flatbed truck he parked had been shattered and items were strewn about inside.

He told McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Ivan Tsethlikai he had parked the vehicle at Red Canyon Ranch on July 1 and returned on July 21, which was when he noticed the damage. A socket set valued at about $40 was the lone item taken.

A report was made and there are no leads.

STOLEN VEHICLE
Gallup, July 11

A woman let her son use her vehicle to go to a job interview, but a late return and previously troubled history with vehicle use led her to call the Gallup Police Department about a stolen vehicle.

Officer Christopher Dawes met the caller early at Gallup Indian Medical Center. She told him her son, Christian Smith, 18, began using the vehicle around 1:15 pm the day before. She said he called at about 8:15 that evening and  said he had not been back to her residence. He stated his stomach had been hurting, so she said they could meet at the hospital.

However, Smith was not present at GIMC or Rehoboth McKinley Christian Health Care Services. The caller said when she let Smith use her truck in the past, he had wrecked it. She also added they had found liquor on him several times. She contacted her daughter at the Sports Page Bar and confirmed the vehicle was not there either.

The caller then decided to report the vehicle as stolen, which would put it into the  National Crime Information Center and have the driver, Smith, listed as a suspect. Dawes left the scene afterward to give the information to Metro Dispatch.

But about an hour later, Dawes was dispatched to the caller’s residence on Strong Drive and found Smith had returned the vehicle and was inside. The caller said she did not want to prosecute, and no arrest was made. There were no further incidents.