SUNDAY, JULY 17

Ÿ A deputy responded to a scene in reference to a hit and run, and made contact with the owner of the vehicle that had been hit. A man and his nephew were inside of an recreational vehicle when they heard a large crash and the RV shook. He went outside and saw the suspect’s truck’s front bumper against the rear bumper of his RV. The owner of the RV attempted to speak to the driver, who got back into his truck and left the scene. The damage to the RV was estimated at $2,500. The following day, another deputy observed a truck fitting the description of the hit-and-run vehicle being closely followed by a second vehicle, an SUV. When the truck was pulled over, the second vehicle pulled in front of it and also stopped. The driver of the truck was identified as the girlfriend of the man who owned it, who was driving her vehicle, the SUV. She said that she met her boyfriend north of Cortez at his request, and he asked her to drive his truck for him. When asked why, she said that it might be because he was here in the U.S. illegally and he had crashed his truck earlier. When the deputy asked the suspect why he left the scene after crashing his truck, he said he didn’t want to get into trouble. The deputy observed signs that the male had been drinking, and his truck showed evidence that it had recently been involved in a collision.

MONDAY, JULY 18

Ÿ A deputy was dispatched to the Maverick Country Store in reference to a theft. He spoke to the reporting party, who believed that an ex-employee who had just resigned had taken an estimated $9,860 during the span of about a month while working there. She said that she had surveillance video of the employee “doing fishy things” but did not clearly see her taking money. When the employee was questioned, she said that she had nothing to do with the missing money; the reporting party said that she did not make a practice of questioning employees unless she has good evidence to show they did whatever was in question. She said that after she was questioned, the employee resigned and said go ahead and try and prosecute all you want. The deputy planned to review the surveillance footage.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 20

Ÿ A deputy was dispatched to speak with a woman by phone in reference to a lost purse at the Ute Mountain travel center. The woman had left her purse at the Travel Center in Towaoc, and was requesting that they try to locate the purse. The Travel Center staff advised the deputy that no one had located the purse. The location the purse had been left at was not covered by surveillance video. The purse contained various credit cards and $800 cash. Two days later, an unknown individual found the purse in the parking lot of City Market in Cortez. All items were still in the purse except for the $800 in currency. At this time, there are no known suspects who may have taken the purse.

SATURDAY, JULY 23

Ÿ A deputy responded to a reported theft of an all-terrain vehicle, and was met by a reporting party and his son. The last known time the ATV was seen was in the garage on the previous Thursday morning. The reporting party said no one had permission to take the ATV, and identified features and after-market additions. He had put a wooden box on the back metal rack to hold a cooler, and it also had two metal paint rollers on the back, bent to haul the trash can from the house to the end of the driveway. The ATV is red with a black seat, and in newer condition, with no damage. Its value was estimated to be approximately $2,500. The deputy took photos of the garage where the ATV had been and tracks in the driveway. No further information was obtained from neighbors, and there is no suspect at this time.

SUNDAY, JULY 24

Ÿ A deputy was clearing a traffic contact with three males along Colorado Highway 145 when another vehicle struck his patrol car, which was parked behind the vehicle contacted with overhead emergency lights activated. While standing next to the patrol car, placing a book back into the door’s storage pocket, the deputy looked up and observed a vehicle traveling toward him. The deputy noticed the car was drifting toward him. He jumped into his vehicle to avoid being struck by the suspect car, and closed the door. The car struck the patrol vehicle in the left rear corner, slamming the deputy into his seat and pushing the patrol vehicle forward and sideways. As it passed, the vehicle continued to make contact with the left side of the patrol car, where the deputy had previously been standing. The suspect vehicle then continued to the right and struck the car of the three males who had been pulled over in front of the patrol car. Their car was pushed into the ditch near where the three males were standing, and then the car with a driver struck a fence. The three men ran to the deputy to see if he was all right. The driver of the vehicle that had hit the two cars was slumped forward with the vehicle still running, but when asked if he was injured, said no. The driver exhibited signs of having been drinking, and after being detained for further investigation of DUI, a bag of marijuana was observed sitting in plain view next to the driver’s seat, along with an open bottle of Budweiser beer. The driver produced a valid Medical Marijuana Card, which was secured as evidence along with a glass pipe and the marijuana. The driver refused to perform voluntary roadside maneuvers.