Print
Email Story
A 48-year-old Kennewick man was arrested after he allegedly got a new air conditioner and fencing material for his new house by billing it to someone else's contract.
Kennewick police detectives searched Calvin William Welch's home at 400 E. 19th Ave. on Wednesday and found the stolen property, said Detective Rick Runge.
The owner of Dale Thomas HVAC Service called police after discovering discrepancies in billing invoices, Runge said.
One invoice showed an air conditioning unit had been billed to a contract, but when staff checked the job site, they learned it wasn't part of the contract and hadn't been installed there, Runge said.
Investigators determined Welch, who worked at Dale Thomas HVAC, ordered the air-conditioning unit for his new home but put it on an unrelated contract, he said.
They also discovered fencing material -- ordered from two lumber companies and put on fictitious accounts -- that was used at Welch's new home, Runge said.
Welch was arrested and booked into the Benton County jail on suspicion of second-degree theft.
4-year-old Moses Lake girl dies in crash
A 4-year-old Moses Lake girl was killed when the SUV she was in ran a stop sign and was hit by a Suburban near Moses Lake, authorities said.
Alcohol may be a factor in the collision, said Grant County Undersheriff John Turley.
The crash occurred at 1:50 p.m. Saturday at the intersection of Road 4 Northeast and Road L Northeast, about two miles northeast of Moses Lake, Turley said.
Misty D. Simpson was flown to a Spokane hospital and died the following day, Turley said.
Misty was in a 1993 Jeep Cherokee driven by her mother, Brittany Megan Simpson, 21, of Moses Lake.
Simpson was eastbound on Road 4 Northeast, ran the stop sign and was hit by a 1997 Chevrolet Suburban that was northbound on Road L Northeast, Turley said.
The Suburban, driven by Stefan M. McNamara, 17, of Moses Lake, had the right of way and was not required to stop, Turley said.
When emergency crews arrived, they found the Suburban on its top and the Jeep resting on its driver side.
Simpson, her daughter and another passenger, Jonathan Lee Zyph, 23, of Ephrata, were taken to Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake, along with McNamara.
Simpson and McNamara have since been released, but Zyph was also flown to a Spokane hospital, where he's being treated for a chest injury, Turley said.
The crash remains under investigation and charges are pending, he said.
2 Hermiston men die Sunday in collision
Two Hermiston men died Sunday in a head-on wreck south of Umatilla, officials said.
Skip Harmon, 42, was driving a 1997 Ford F-350 truck south on Old River Road when a truck driven by Luiz Fernando Barron-Gonzalez crashed into his vehicle, said Umatilla County Undersheriff Terry Rowan.
Barron-Gonzalez, 22, of Hermiston, was driving a 2001 Chevrolet S-10 pickup.
Harmon died at the scene, Rowan said.
Barron-Gonzalez died during the flight to a Portland hospital from Good Shepherd Medical Center in Hermiston.
Harmon's wife and daughter, who were also in the truck, were treated at Good Shepherd Medical Center.
The sheriff's office is continuing to investigate the crash.
Police seek Richland escapee
Pasco police and Tri-Cities Crime Stoppers are looking for a 22-year-old Richland woman wanted for escape.
Rikkilee Dawn Kaiser is 5-foot-4, 130 pounds with blonde hair and green eyes.
She has a tattoo on her neck with the word "faith."
She was last known to be living in the 1900 block of Everest Avenue.
Kaiser is wanted for a felony warrant from the state Department of Corrections for escape from community custody on an original third-degree assault charge.
Tri-Cities Crime Stoppers pays a cash reward of up to $1,000 for information that results in a felony arrest.
Anyone with information about Kaiser's whereabouts is asked to call 586-8477 or go to www.tricitiescrimestoppers.org.
Tips can also be sent by text message by writing "Text TIP 411" plus the message to CRIMES (274637).
All calls to Crime Stoppers are confidential.
-- Paula Horton: 582-1556; phorton@tricityherald.com
