Five arrested in theft of beer from Strawn business

By Christin Coyne
ccoyne@mineralwellsindex.com

The Palo Pinto Sheriff’s Office arrested five individuals last week in connection with two burglaries to a business in Strawn earlier this month.

Sheriff Ira Mercer said a business in the 100 block of Grant Avenue was broken into two times in the same night and several cases of beer were taken by two groups of people at a party. Deputies responded to a call Aug. 3 reporting the burglary.

Law enforcement officials believe a group of four individuals first broke into the restaurant by kicking in the back door and stole several cases of beer. The teens later bragged about it at the party, according to Mercer.

Colton Keith Kirkland, 17, of Strawn was arrested Aug. 6 and George Britt Epley, 17, of Hico, was arrested Friday. A 16-year-old juvenile was also arrested and all were charged with burglary of a building, a state jail felony.

Two other individuals then went back and took more beer, according to Mercer.

Billy Joe Garrison, 23, of Strawn, and Zachary Isac Winegeart, 18, of Strawn were arrested Aug. 5 on the same charge.

Winegeart also had a warrant for disorderly conduct.

All were later released on bonds, ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.

Mercer said most of those arrested gave confessions and another arrest is pending in the case.

Tackling injury

The woman had been arrested three times in the last week by the Mineral Wells Police Department on charges of disorderly conduct, assault, public intoxication, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia and she wasn’t about to let it happen again minutes after walking free.

Christine Ford Edwards, 48, of Mineral Wells, had just been released Friday morning after spending two nights in the Palo Pinto County Jail for possession of marijuana when a Palo Pinto County sheriff’s office employee noticed they had just received a warrant for her arrest from the courthouse.

PPCSO Cpt. Craig Goen approached the woman, standing in the parking lot across the street from the sheriff’s office, and attempted to arrest her on a warrant for motion to revoke probation for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to Sheriff Ira Mercer. Edwards then reportedly began running.

Mercer said Goen chased her and managed to trip her by the ankle but sprained his shoulder and scraped himself during the attempted tackle.

Edwards was also charged with evading arrest and is currently in jail.

Man with 11 warrants arrested

Mineral Wells police reported arresting a fleeing man Tuesday afternoon after he began running from officers while they were searching for another man.

While assisting another police officer looking for a subject wearing jeans and no shirt, officers saw a man matching the description running from them.

Michael James Smith IV, 17, of Mineral Wells, reportedly ran in and out of homes in the 300 and 400 blocks of N.W. 2nd Avenue during a foot chase with police and Constable Gary Morris before he was caught and arrested.

Smith was wanted on Mineral Wells warrants for evading arrest, theft less than $50, public intoxication, possession of alcohol by a minor, minor in consumption of alcohol, possession of tobacco by a minor, disorderly conduct and two curfew violations, according police. Smith was also wanted on Palo Pinto County warrants for failure to appear for abusive calls to 911 services and for evading arrest, police said.

Counterfeit bills circulating locally

Police arrested one individual but have not yet solved a case involving a rash of counterfeit $10 bills that have been passed at three Mineral Wells businesses since Tuesday night.

Two crudely forged $10 bills have been passed at each of three businesses across town, including Wal-Mart, a fast food restaurant and a laundromat, police said.

James Michael Brown, 42, of Mineral Wells, was arrested around 11 p.m. Tuesday night at Wal-Mart on a charge of forgery of money or securities after reportedly trying to buy items with the obviously fake money, according to police. Brown originally told them he got the money from the bank, police said.

Around 4:30 a.m. and 8 a.m. Wednesday, other individuals passed imitation bills at the other two businesses, police reported.

Sexual assault of a child reported

Mineral Wells police reported they were informed Monday afternoon of allegations of a sexual assault of a 6-year-old girl by Child Protective Services. The matter is under investigation by CPS and police.

Man arrested for shoplifting beer

Palo Pinto sheriff’s deputies assisted Mineral Wells police in catching a man who reportedly fled a convenience store in the 800 block of South Oak Avenue Tuesday around 6:30 p.m. with stolen beer, according to police.

Dwayne Wooten, 31, of Mineral Wells, was charged with theft, less than $50, police reported. More charges are possible, police said.

Burglaries

• A chainsaw and weed eater valued at $280 was reported stolen sometime Saturday from an unlocked shed in the 2200 block of N.E. 1st Street, Mineral Wells police said.

• A unsecured business in the 500 block of Houston Avenue in Strawn was reported broken into Monday, the sheriff’s office reported. A fax and copy machine was reported stolen.

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