Police solve burglaries
By JESSICA KELLER
ARGUS OBSERVER
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 10:02 AM PDT
ONTARIO — The Ontario Police Department arrested two men Sunday in connection with a string of burglaries that occurred in downtown Ontario over the weekend.
Curtis Cody, 35, Prairie City, and Darrell Lammers, 30, Ontario, were arrested and lodged in the Malheur County Jail each on two counts of burglary in the second degree and one count of attempted burglary in the second degree after police said they were able to identify the two suspects during the investigation, OPD Capt. Mark Alexander said.
Alexander said police investigated three separate burglaries at businesses Sunday. The first burglary was reported at Romio’s Pizza, 375 S. Oregon St., at about 11:30 a.m. Alexander said police found a walk-in freezer building behind the restaurant was “forcibly entered” and some food product stolen. Video surveillance was obtained, Alexander said, from which officers were able identify the suspects. During that investigation, however, police were called to a report of a second burglary at Casa Machuca, 65 S.W. Second Ave. That restaurant was also forcibly entered and money and checks written to the business as well as from the business were stolen. Officers also discovered during this investigation the suspects also tried to enter Long’s Sports Pub, 359 S. Oregon St.
“These are all in a block area,” Alexander said. He said, Lammers and Cody were arrested at an apartment at 6 S.W. Ninth Ave., Ontario, and officers were able to recover evidence from both Romio’s and Casa Machuca. Alexander said police also identified two additional suspects, whom they are still pursuing.
He said, OPD is concerned some of the business checks from the Casa Machuca account have been or will be passed, and police would like to hear from businesses that either received one of the checks or had somebody try to use the stolen checks.
In other OPD news, officers handed out 19 traffic citations Saturday night in an enforcement saturation campaign centered at the intersection of East Idaho Avenue and East Lane.
“That’s one of our busiest intersections,” Alexander said, adding it averages about 20 motor vehicle crashes per year, with nine already this year. He said police have received a number of complaints about people running red lights, failing to obey traffic signals and more, in the past, and from about 8 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Saturday, officers concentrated on that intersection to try and crack down on negligent drivers.
Alexander said the citations ranged from disobeying traffic control devices, not wearing a seatbelt, careless driving, insurance and driver’s license violations and speeding.
“What we found substantiated why there’s so many motor vehicle crashes there,” he said, adding OPD considered the saturation effort successful and will likely continue to have them at that intersection in the future.
