COLBY-ABBOTSFORD POLICE

D EPARTMENT

■ July 7 - An officer was informed of drug paraphernalia being found in a health care facility in Abbotsford. The officer met with staff, who turned over a vape device that had been found plugged into an outlet in a resident’s room. Staff had also located two other vapes in the large plants directly outside the front door to the facility. The officer looked up the vape device and confirmed that it contained THC.

The officer then went to speak with the resident, who claimed to have gotten the vape from a gas station. The officer said the gas station did not sell THC vapes. The resident then claimed that an employee gave it to them. They were unable to say who the employee was or when they were given the device. The resident then said the vape was not THC because they had used THC vapes before and that it looked different. The officer informed the resident that the vape would be tested for THC and they would receive a citation if it came back positive.

The officer transported the vape to the police station, where it tested positive for THC. The officer later met with the resident at the facility and gave them a citation for possession of drug paraphernalia.

■ July 7 - An officer received a shoplifting complaint from a grocery store in Abbotsford. The officer was shown video footage of an individual putting a pack of blueberries, a pack of strawberries, and a pack of Jello in their purse and leaving the store without paying for the items. The total cost of the items was $13.58. The complainant said they had suspected the individual of shoplifting for sometime now, but this was the first time they have been able to catch them on video. The complainant wanted the individual banned from the store.

The officer met with the individual and asked if they had been at the store on July 4. The individual said they had been. The officer asked what happened. The individual said they may have taken some baby formula. The office advised that they had been caught stealing Jello and fruit. The individual said they did not have money to pay for the items. The officer informed them that they will be receiving a citation for retail theft, as well as being banned from the property. The individual said they understood.

The officer informed the complainant of the individual mentioning taking baby formula as well. The complainant advised that they would review the footage and let the police know what they found.

■ July 8 - A traffic stop was conducted on a vehicle observed to be traveling 45 mph in a posted 30 mph zone in Colby. The driver was unable to provide a driver’s license or identification. They verbally identified themselves and claimed they did not know their exact birth date. The officer asked why the driver didn’t know their own date of birth. The driver stated they never used their brother’s vehicle. The officer said that using their brother’s vehicle had nothing to do with not knowing their own birthday.

The officer asked if the driver could call someone to confirm their birthday. The driver then stated the month was January. The officer asked if they were lying due to a possible warrant. The driver denied that and said they had never been in contact with law enforcement before. The officer asked for a Clark County deputy to assist with a fingerprint reader.

The driver provided a picture of their birth certificate, the date of which was 08/05/2007. The officer asked why the driver told them two different months and a different year for their birthday. The driver said they did not want to get in trouble. The officer advised that lying to law enforcement would get them in more trouble.

Abackground check was conducted on the driver, but no records returned. There was no returns on the fingerprint reader either. The driver was issued citations for operating without a valid license and for resisting/obstructing an officer. The officer advised the driver that, since they didn’t have a valid driver’s license, they could not drive any further and would need to contact someone with a valid license to drive.

■ July 8 - An officer received a call from a concerned party regarding a fraud complaint. The complainant said the victim’s bank account had been emptied and they were trying to recover the money at the bank. They victim had informed the complainant that someone had purchased a plane ticket to North Carolina and also purchased hotel rooms for the weekend of July 3.

The complainant knew that the victim had an individual staying with them at their residence in Abbotsford, and did not believe the individual to be a trustworthy person. The complainant said the victim had called the airline that was listed on the bank statement, and the airline confirmed that the individual staying at the house had been the one to purchase the plane ticket using the victim’s debit card. The complainant looked up the individual’s information and saw that they had open court cases and could not leave the state.

The officer advised the complainant that the victim needs to be the one to file a report. The complainant asked the officer to speak with the victim as the victim did not believe that the individual would take their money. The officer told the complainant that they would speak with the complainant, but could not force them to file a report.

The officer ran a background check on the individual staying with victim and found that they had open cases in Marathon County for theft, misappropriation of identification to obtain money, and using a computer to make threats.The officer later spoke with the victim. The victim told the officer that someone had emptied out their checking account, but they could not prove who did it. The victim had gone to the bank on July 7 when they realized their account was emptied out. The bank closed the account and was working to refund the money.

The officer asked about the individual staying with them and about the plane ticket purchased using their debit card. The victim said they had no way to prove who did that to them. The officer asked if the individual had purchased the ticket. The victim said they did not have proof of that. The victim then said they had called the airline and had been told that someone using the individual’s name bought the ticket, but the airline could not say if the individual got on the plane.

The officer said it didn’t matter if the individual actually got on the plane; it’s the fact that they used the victim’s debit card to purchased the ticket without the victim’s permission. The victim said they talked to a mutual friend of the individual and was told that the individual had been in Wausau, so they never got on the plane. The victim also mentioned there being a bunch of other online purchases that they did not make.

The victim said they still had their debit card and it was never taken. The officer informed them that all the individual had to do was take a picture of the card and they could make purchases online. The officer asked if the victim had any credit cards. The victim did not. The officer asked if the victim kept their Social Security card in a secured area. The victim said they did not. The officer advised the victim to have the bank run a credit report to make sure no credit cards had been opened in their name. The victim did not believe it was possible for someone to do that. The officer explained that if someone had their personal information and Social Security card, it would be very easy to open a credit card. The victim still did not believe it was possible. The officer urged the victim to still have the bank check for them.

The victim did not want to press charges against the individual, stating that they could not prove it was them, but if they could, they would think about it. They mentioned that the individual had called them the day prior to ask if everything was OK and if they were having money issues. The officer told the victim that the individual had probably used their debit card number after the bank closed the account and it was declined. The victim said they needed time to think it over and asked the officer to come back another day to speak with them.

On July 11, the officer met with the victim again. The victim said the individual was a good person and did a lot of things for them. They said they did not want to see the individual get in trouble. They spoke with the individual, who said they were moving to Hawaii to get away from their problems in Wisconsin. The victim told the officer that if the individual moves and promises to turn their life around, they will not press charges. The officer asked if the victim had the bank check their credit report. The victim said they had not yet, and still did not believe that someone could open a card with their information. They said they would talk to the bank, and if a credit card was opened without their permission, they would file a report against the individual.

■ July 9 - An officer was dispatched to an Abbotsford residence for a possible break-in. The officer was advised that the caller was home with their sister, who saw a white male wearing all black clothing come to their door and pound on it loudly. The sister thought the male was attempting to find a way in, as he went to all the doors and was pounding on them. The caller said the man was last seen walking through neighboring yards. Neither siblings had seen the male before and could not give further descriptions of him.

Three officers patrolled the area within minutes of the complaint, but no suspects were located. A juvenile wearing all black getting into a vehicle a block from the address was identified, but there was nothing suspicious about their behavior or story. Residents were not able to provide any video footage of the suspect. Extra patrols were planned for the area.

■ July 9 - An officer was informed of a minor crash between a semi and farm tractor on Hiline Ave. The driver of the semi requested a report due to minor damage to the rental truck. The semi driver said they had been traveling southbound on Hiline, which was not a designated trucking route. They approached a tractor pulling a large farm implement. The semi was unable to move over any further and the farm implement caught the driver’s side mirror of the semi, breaking it off. No other visible damage was caused.

The tractor continued on its way. A passerby followed the tractor and notified them of the incident. The owner of the tractor came to look at the damage and told the semi driver they would not pay for the damage. The tractor owner said the semi was not supposed to be on the road, as the driver was not delivering to a business located on Hiline. The tractor owner left before the semi driver could get any information.

The officer called the tractor owner. The owner said they were approaching the semi and the semi was not moving over for them. The driver said they were already driving with a tire in the ditch and could not move over any further. The semi passed by and the driver did not feel anything indicating that the vehicles made contact, so they continued on. The tractor owner provided all the vehicle information they could and said there was no damage to any of the farm equipment. The damage was estimated to be less than $1,000 and was not reportable.

■ July 10 - A traffic stop was conducted on a vehicle traveling through Abbotsford without its headlights or taillights on. The driver said they did not realize that their lights were off. They were unable to provide identification or proof of insurance. They said they were coming from Curtiss and were heading to the store. While speaking with the driver, the officer could smell a strong odor of intoxicants emanating from the vehicle. An empty beer can was also observed on the front passenger floorboard.

The officer asked the driver if they had been drinking. The driver stated they had about three to four beers. The officer asked if they would be willing to submit to field sobriety tests. The driver consented to the field sobriety test, as well as a preliminary breath test, the result of which was 0.225. The driver was placed under arrest and received citations for operating while under the influence (1st), operating with a prohibited bloodalcohol content (1st > 0.15), and operating without a valid license. The driver was then transported to the Marathon County Jail.