BABY CLOTHES DISGUISE
Gallup, Dec. 9
A black Chrysler Pacifica van was seen speeding near the 25.5-mile marker of Interstate 40. When McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Salazar stopped it, he saw a large box, displaying the picture of a car seat in the back cargo area.
The driver, Edward Malone, 41, no address listed, said he had rented the van and proceeded to look up the rental agreement on his phone, without success. He did provide an ID. Malone said he was traveling to Tennessee to see family and although he said he picked the van up in Texas, his itinerary showed his trip started in Yucca Valley, Calif.
As he spoke, Salazar noticed Malone appeared visibly nervous and hesitated when answering his questions.
Malone said he was a barber and was low on funds. However the van was rented for almost a month.
Based on the questioning, Salazar determined Malone was harboring illegal materials. He applied for a search warrant after Malone denied consent to search the van. After the warrant was obtained, Salazar found several heat-sealed packages of marijuana packed inside two black suitcases along with random baby clothes, a used dirty swing and a used dirty baby bath tub, which Salazar believed were props designed to fit the story of visiting family about to have a baby.
Malone was transported to McKinley County Adult Detention Center and booked for possessing a prohibited controlled substance. The report stated the combined weight of the seized cargo containing the marijuana was over 52 pounds.
Malone was released on his own recognizance by Judge Cynthia Sanders.
RENT-A-CAR FOR DRUG RUN
Gallup, Nov. 30
A silver Toyota Camry was seen speeding on Interstate 40, where McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Salazar was dispatched. He pulled the vehicle over near the 18.5-mile marker and conducted a traffic stop.
Salazar met the driver, Texroy Fray, 47, no address listed, and found signs of long-distance travel inside the vehicle, including snacks and trash strewn inside with only minimal cargo. After obtaining identification and a rental agreement for the vehicle, Salazar asked Fray about his travel.
Fray had rented the car in Florida for a week and said he was traveling to Nevada to visit family, but was unable to provide an exact city, or where he was coming from.
When asked to provide answers about his trip, Fray became verbally combative toward Salazar, who then determined he was involved with illegal activity. Fray did not provide an answer when asked how long he had been in Nevada or when asked if Salazar could search the vehicle.
After obtaining a warrant to search the car, Salazar found a large trash bag with marijuana in the trunk along with several heat-sealed bags. Fray was placed under arrest for possessing marijuana. The combined weight of the seized cargo was about 53 pounds.
Fray was then taken to McKinley County Adult Detention Center and booked. He was released on his own recognizance by Judge Cynthia Sanders.
EXPENSIVE TASTE
Gallup, Aug. 21
Gallup Officer Darius Johnson was wrapping up a hit-and-run call near Rio West Mall when he observed a male run out of the back door of the Shoe Dept. store. Another male was seen running after the first, telling him to stop.
Johnson met the man, an employee at the store, who said the fleeing party had stolen a pair of shoes from the store. He drove across the street to the Tractor Supply Company store and found the suspect, Nathaniel Joe, 48, of St. Michael’s, Ariz.
Joe said he left the shoes near the JCPenney store back at Rio West Mall, so Johnson took him back there, but they couldn’t find the shoes. Johnson then spoke with the store employee, who told him another person found the shoes and returned them to Joe.
The employee said he was emptying trash from the back store room when he saw Joe enter and begin looking through the shelves. When he yelled out to him, Joe took a pair of shoes worth $80 and fled from the scene. The employee followed and that was when he met Johnson in the parking lot.
Johnson ran Joe’s name through Metro Dispatch and found several active warrants. He transported Joe to McKinley County Adult Detention Center, but was informed he would need medical clearance because he had an infected area on his arm.
Due to a high-priority call that came in, Johnson issued a summons to Joe and advised him to receive medical treatment for his infection. Joe told Johnson he would seek medical attention and take care of his warrants at a later date.
UNWELCOME VISITOR
Gallup, Aug. 9
A man was reported snooping around a residence on the 300 block of Vista Drive early in the morning and threatening a woman. After the call was placed, Gallup Officer Elijah Bowman was dispatched.
Bowman found the calling party along with the suspect, later identified as Lorenzo Yazzie, 52, of Gallup, at the scene. The caller told Bowman she and her mother found Yazzie inside their residence and did not know how he got in. She also said they had a restraining order against Yazzie.
After Yazzie was detained, Bowman received more information from the caller. She returned to the residence and found Yazzie inside, where he said the door had been unlocked and he went in. Yazzie left the scene afterward, but soon returned and tried to break the door open and threatened to break one of the windows if he wasn’t allowed inside. He then punched the screen door and threatened to break the windows on the caller’s vehicle. Then he left again.
When he returned the third time, he knocked on the mother’s bedroom window and then banged on the doors of the house.
The caller’s mother went outside to wait for Yazzie to come back again, so she could confront him. She went inside for a couple of minutes, and returned to find her chairs missing.
The protection order against Yazzie stipulates he is not to be within 100 feet of the calling party’s residence or 25 feet from the mother’s worksite. He is also barred from talking to, visiting, or telephoning the mother without court permission.
Based on the details given, Bowman determined Yazzie violated the order and placed him under arrest. He was also advised by Metro Dispatch that Yazzie had an active arrest warrant, as well.
Yazzie was transported to McKinley County Adult Detention Center and booked for breaking and entering, violating a restraining order, and the active warrant.
Yazzie was released on his own recognizance by Judge Robert Ionta.