Local News

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for several crimes after a weekend shoplifting incident at Walmart. The Police Department reports officers ultimately arrested a 29-year-old male subject on the railroad tracks off NE Agness Avenue on Saturday at about 4:35 p.m.. Police said the subject stole approximately $1,100 worth of merchandise from the store on NE Terry Lane by taking the items past all points of sale and attempting to exit the store without paying. They said he was confronted by loss prevention near the exit and he dropped most of the stolen items as he fled on foot. The suspect jumped on a bicycle and fled onto the railroad tracks at Agness, but the bike sustained a mechanical malfunction on the tracks and was no longer a viable means of escape. While attempting to take the man into custody, he physically resisted which caused officers to lose their footing in the loose rocks and fall to the ground. He continued to resist until being placed into custody. According to the report, a set of brass knuckles were located in the man's pocket. The suspect was first examined by American Medical Response and then lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 1st-Degree Theft, Resisting Arrest, Escape and Carrying a Concealed Weapon. He was being held without bail. The man was also trespassed from Walmart and the railroad property.

 

Police arrested a man for stealing a vehicle and felony drug possession after a weekend encounter at the Grants Pass Shopping Center. Grants Pass Police contacted the 41-year-old male subject and a female friend at the shopping center off NE D Street on Saturday at 6:42 p.m.. Police said they had probable cause to arrest the subject for stealing a vehicle after he was misidentified as a different person. During questioning, the man admitted to the crime and was placed into custody. During a consent search, the man was found to be in possession of approximately 22 grams of methamphetamine which was seized as evidence and for destruction. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle and Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance. He was being held without bail.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a Grants Pass woman for intentionally starting a weekend grass fire near Cave Junction. OSP reports troopers and fire personnel responded to multiple reports of a fire off Redwood Highway near West Side Road on Saturday at 6:53 p.m.. The Illinois Valley Fire District reported the small vegetation fire was extinguished and mopped up with assistance from the Oregon Department of Forestry. According to OSP, a witness stated that he saw a female subject start a fire on the side of the highway. She was located and placed into custody. The suspect -- identified by OSP as 44-year-old Stephani Kaye Fuentes -- was transported to Grants Pass and lodged without bail at the Josephine County Jail for Reckless Burning.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a foreign national for trying to steal groceries from a local supermarket. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a shoplifting complaint at WinCo Foods on NE Terry Lane on Saturday around 2:45 p.m.. Police said a 31-year-old female subject from Romania passed all points of sale with about $300 worth of grocery items without paying for them before she was stopped by loss prevention. They said the woman and her husband were evasive and uncooperative during the investigation. Witnesses reported the woman and her husband were standing in the parking lot near Panda Express and begging for money for most of the day. The female suspect was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Theft. Her husband was detained, but not arrested.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a Grants Pass man for extremely impaired driving during a weekend traffic stop on Redwood Highway. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Chevrolet Trailblazer driven by a 36-year-old male subject on US Highway 199 near Hubbard Lane on Friday around 8:55 p.m.. Troopers said they stopped the vehicle for traffic violations and the driver showed very strong signs of impairment. They said he performed poorly in field sobriety tests and was transported to the Grants Pass Sobering Center where he provided a breath sample that was more than four times the legal driving limit. The suspect was charged with Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol and Reckless Driving before being lodged at the Sobering Center. The vehicle was released to its registered owner.

 

Grants Pass police officers and firefighters logged another busy week of protecting residents, visitors and structures in the community. According to the Weekly Report filed by Grants Pass City Manager Aaron Cubic, police officers responded to a total of 675 calls for service and 256 officer-initiated calls last week that resulted in 58 arrests, 24 citations, 28 warnings and one highly intoxicated person being lodged at the Sobering Center. Cubic also reported that officers conducted a total of 41 traffic stops and made a total of 12 referrals to the Oregon Department of Human Services. The GPPD Community Response Team (CRT) made a total of 161 contacts with potential troublemakers while arresting one person, citing 18 more and warning 43 others. The CRT unit also trespassed nine individuals, posted 73 transient camps and removed trash from three campsites in city parks. Grants Pass Fire & Rescue responded to a total of 123 calls last week including 40 for emergency medical service, 13 reports of fire or smoke, 14 lift assists, seven rescue situations, 13 assists to other agencies and one false alarm. Firefighters also performed 16 business inspections, assisted the public 11 times and installed two child car seats. The Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center received 1,372 emergency calls last week along with 786 calls for non-emergency service.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a Cave Junction man for multiple sex crime allegations last week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested a 33-year-old male subject in the 200-block of South Caves Avenue on Thursday afternoon. No information was disclosed about the specifics of the case, but the man was wanted on a Josephine County felony warrant containing a secret indictment for sex offenses including three counts of 1st-Degree Sex Abuse and one count of another felony-level sex crime. The suspect -- identified in court records as 33-year-old Kenneth Andrew Nelson -- was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail where he was being held in lieu of posting $250,000 bail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a Grants Pass man over the weekend for attacking his wife at a residence in the southwest part of the city. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested the 46-year-old male subject for the incident in the 2,000-block of Allen Creek Road on Friday at 8:05 p.m.. Deputies said a woman called 9-1-1 to report that her husband choked her. They said dispatchers could hear the victim gasping for air as she told them she was not sure if she needed an ambulance. Personnel from American Medical Response were staged near the home awaiting the arrival of law enforcement. Upon arrival, deputies interviewed both parties, documented the woman's injuries and then placed the husband into custody. The victim refused medical transport to the hospital. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Domestic Strangulation. He was being held without bail.

 

Firefighters worked all day Sunday on four new lightning-sparked fires across the Oregon Department of Forestry's Southwest District. As of 6 p.m. yesterday, all fires were 100% lined and in various stages of mop-up. ODF reports the Sugarpine Gulch Fire located northwest of Rogue River was the most challenging incident and the last one to be fully-lined due to steep terrain and windy conditions. It was caught at just over seven acres. The Eastside Road Fire located along Upper Applegate Road and west of Buncom was holding at an estimated two acres. It was 100% lined and 20% mopped up last night. Operations were ongoing on the blaze overnight. The Canyon Creek Fire located west of Highway 227 and northwest of Trail was caught at just over six acres. It was 30% mopped up and operations continued overnight. The Old Baldy Fire located in the hills between Grants Pass and Wimer was caught at 1.5 acres. It was 30% mopped up and operations were ongoing. The Sexton Fire reported on the east side of Interstate 5 between Hugo and Sunny Valley was not found by firefighters after a thorough search. A second reconnaissance flight was conducted Sunday and no new fires were found. ODF detection camera operators will continue to search lightning strike areas for any smoke or fires. Crews remain ready to respond to any new fire starts across the district.