In brief: Two injured in crash as man flees police
A Spokane Valley man fleeing police in his Volvo crashed head-on into a car on Sullivan Road on Sunday evening. Two people were injured.
Salvador Casillas Flores, 39, fled the 6:13 p.m. crash, though Deputy Juan Rodriguez found him hiding in a small cornfield, Spokane County Sheriff’s Office Detective Dave Thornburg said Monday.
Police say Flores was drunk and had pulled into a driveway but didn’t get out of his car when he saw Rodriguez approach near East 24th Avenue and South Progress Road. Rodriguez became suspicious and turned around to get the Volvo’s license plate number for a records check.
Flores sped away, and a chase ensured for about a quarter mile before Flores crashed into another vehicle, injuring Mikayla Hood, 26, and Jasmine Hood, 12, according to Thornburg.
Flores was hospitalized and faces charges of vehicular assault, eluding police and hit and run.
Police investigating suspected fight hoax
Police continue to investigate a suspected hoax that led to a crash that injured a Spokane County sheriff’s deputy early Friday.
Rustin Olson, 35, a six-year veteran, responded to a report of a brawl involving 20 people at South Pines Elementary School, 12021 E. 24th Ave., at 12:23 a.m.
The anonymous caller soon reported five additional participants. Olson and other deputies sped to the scene with lights and sirens active because of the large number of people reportedly involved.
Olson’s car struck a large piece of firewood left on the inside lanes of South Pines Road near East Seventh Avenue.
The wood was about 2 feet long and a foot in diameter. It became lodged underneath Olson’s patrol car, causing him to lose control. The car rolled and ended up upside-down in the southbound lanes of Pines Road.
Investigators found another large tree branch in the outside southbound lane of Pines Road near where the firewood had been placed. They also found a large, blue, plastic Tupperware-type bin with a sign posted on it advertising a nearby garage sale. The bin, which was weighted down by several rocks, was located in the outside northbound lane a few hundred feet south of the wood.
Police found “absolutely nothing” at the school and believe the fight report is linked to the items placed in the roadway.
Olson fractured vertebrae and will be out of work for at least a week. He is recovering at home.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Check at (509) 456-2233.
Neighborhood council meeting canceled
The Nevada/Lidgerwood Neighborhood Council meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Neva-Wood COPS Shop, 4707 N. Addison St., has been canceled.
The council meets on the second Wednesday of the month. For more information, visit nevadalidgerwood.spokaneneighborhoods.org.