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Tahoe crime recap: Drunk driver tries to run witness off road after hitting bicyclist

A South Lake Tahoe man accused on being drunk and behind the wheel did not take too kindly to being followed after hitting a bicyclist and fleeing the scene, according to law enforcement.

The incident started around 7:30 a.m. Saturday, March 18, when the 33-year-old resident of South Lake Tahoe hit a bicyclist at the corner of Pioneer Avenue and Midway Road, according to Sgt. Shannon Laney with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department. The man, who was driving under the influence, fled the scene after hitting the bicyclist.

Another motorist who witnessed the incident followed the man to the Bijou neighborhood, where the man realized he was being followed.



“Apparently he didn’t like being followed,” Laney said.

The 33-year-old turned his vehicle around and tried to ram the witness off the road. Fortunately, the man missed.



The witness was able to provide police with a very detailed description of the incident and within an hour police tracked down the man’s vehicle, which was parked outside his residence, according to Laney. The man was sleeping when police arrived.

He was booked into the El Dorado County jail in South Lake Tahoe on charges of driving under the influence causing bodily injury; fleeing the scene where there’s an injury; and assault with a deadly weapon (in this case a vehicle). According to El Dorado County jail records, the man remained in custody Tuesday on total bail of $205,000.

The bicyclist sustained superficial injuries and did not require further medical attention.

Failed drug purchase reveals stockpile of stole property

An attempted drug purchase in Rancho Cordova may have helped South Lake Tahoe police uncover a trove of stolen property.

Deputies were conducting a drug bust when a 44-year-old South Lake Tahoe man pulled up to the residence to purchase drugs. There was a snowmobile in the back of the pickup truck that the man was driving at the time, according to Laney.

Due to an issue with the vehicle identification number, the snowmobile did not register as stolen. However, it did reveal the name and location of the owner, who indicated the snowmobile was stolen.

Investigators notified a detective with the South Lake Tahoe Police Department, who proceeded to obtain a search warrant. A search at the property on Aspen Avenue turned up such a large trove of property that investigators were still sorting through things as of Tuesday — a week after the man was arrested.

Bicycles, generators and some ski equipment are among some of the property that investigators are still attempting to match up with past reports, according to Laney.

The police department intends to put out a press release in the near future in an effort to track down potential property owners.

Assault with a deadly bong

A South Lake Tahoe woman, who is no stranger to police, was arrested after smashing a bong across a man’s head Thursday, March 16.

The 31-year-old woman was renting couch space from a man who ended up being the victim, Laney said. The woman brought a homeless man back to the residence in the Sierra Tract neighborhood, which the man renting the couch space did not like.

He told them both to leave.

The woman proceeded to hit the man in the head with a large glass bong and fled, Laney said.

He was transported to Barton Memorial Hospital where he received multiple stitches. Police located the woman — who Laney described as “somebody we’ve had a lot of contact with” — walking down the street near the 7-Eleven on the corner of Carson Avenue.

She was booked into the El Dorado County jail on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon, with bail set at $25,000. The woman was no longer in custody Tuesday, according to a search of jail records.

Squatter’s paradise

South Lake Tahoe Police arrested a local man Monday, March 20, after discovering he was squatting at a vacant home recently purchased by a Bay Area doctor.

A neighbor contacted law enforcement after noticing some people entering the home, which the neighbor believed had been recently sold. Police discovered the man and some others — Laney described all the people as “frequent flyers” — squatting in the home.

All the other people informed law enforcement that the 32-year-old local man told them that he had permission to stay at the home and they believed him because he used a key to open the door.

The man apparently smashed a Realtor box containing a key.

Laney did not have information on how long the man was staying in the home, as the police report was still being filed Tuesday morning, but he did say the man was there long enough to change the lock on the door.

He was booked into the El Dorado County jail on a charge of first degree burglary. Bail was set at $50,000 and the man was still in custody as of Tuesday afternoon, according to jail records.


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