17-year-old girl suspected
of setting multiple blazes

A 17-year-old girl was arrested last Saturday and charged with setting two downtown fires. Furthermore, officials say they are planning to charge her with eight other fires in the downtown area two weeks ago.

Clare Jannive Douglass, 17, was charged with two counts of setting fire to grassland or woodland and one count each of injury to personal property and possession of alcohol by a person under 21. She is being held on a $50,300 bond.

Asheville-Buncombe Arson Task Force Director Buddy Thompson said that he intends to charge her with a total of 10 fires, including eight set Nov. 19 and 20.

Eyewitnesses saw Douglass start the fires last Saturday, Thompson said.

Five fires were set Nov. 19 between 9 and 9:45 p.m. on Orange and Market streets and Woodfin and Central avenues. All the fires involved brush, leaves and trash and all were within a few hundred yards of each other. One of the fires was within 20 feet of the Thomas Wolfe Historic Site.

Two more fires were set Nov. 20 in an alley off Walnut Street. One of those fires was started in a pile of cardboard under a cluster of electrical boxes serving several businesses. A third fire was started in a leaf pile along Hillside Street.

Though Thompson did not release details, he said there were similarities between Saturdayís fire and the Nov. 19 and 20 fires, which led him to believe Douglass was responsible for all of them.

Police release more details
about pool hall shootings

Police officers served three search warrants on houses related to the fatal shootings on Nov. 25 of Jose Gallegos-Alvarez, 27, and Apolinar Gallegos-Alvarez, 22 at the Billar Latino Pool Hall on Haywood Road in West Asheville, the Asheville Police Department announced last Thursday.

Police are still looking for the man accused of shooting the Gallegos-Alvarez brothers, Celerino Maldonado Ponce, 35.
On Nov. 26, authorities charged three brothers with simple affray (fighting) for allegedly instigating the fight that led to the shooting.

However, police announced last Thursday that they had filed an additional charge of accessory after the fact to murder against one of the brothers.

Gabriel Maldonado-Maldonado, 17, and Gerardo Maldonado-Maldonado, 25, were each being held in lieu of $100,000 bond.
Alejandro Maldonado-Maldonado, 24, was being held in lieu of $159,000 bond after police added the accessory to murder charge against him.

Immigration officials said the victims had come to the U.S. from Mexico along with their six brothers to work in the construction industry.

The Gallegos-Alvarez brothers were both working for Madison County builder Tim Ramsey on the new Madison Pharmacy in Marshall.

Ramsey noted that the men were hard workers who† had both turned up to work on Thanksgiving to help keep the job on schedule. Apolinar Gallegos-Alvarez had been reluctant to stop working when Ramsey urged the pair to join his family for dinner, Ramsey said.

Police also announced last Thursday that another victim was struck by gunfire during the fight, but they did not release the identity of the victim, citing ìongoing safety concerns.î

Authorities searched the Maldonado-Maldonado brothersí home at 30 Whispering Pines Trailer Court off Sweeten Creek Road, as well as two other homes at 8 Beth Hill Lane and 12 Leroy Lane, both off Erwin Hills Drive.

Ponce had been working as a painter at Westwood Baptist Church, and his employer, contractor Mark Anderson, expressed surprise about the charges. Anderson said Ponce was a dedicated worker whose wife and children often would bring meals to the job site.

Ponce has no prior criminal record in Buncombe County, other than a speeding ticket from October 2002.

State alcohol agents said they had been watching the pool hall before the killings. A state Alcohol Law Enforcement agent had broken up a fight there the previous night.

The state suspended the pool hallís alcohol license Nov. 27 because of the killings.

Bronze sculpture of apples
pilfered from Urban Trail

First, a metal piglet disappeared. Now, a bronze basket of apples has been stolen from the Asheville Urban Trail, prompting city officials to ponder ways to protect the public art installations.

The city will consider ways to protect the 29 art installations downtown, which highlight various historical events.

The basket, which was mounted on a wooden bench at the corner of Lexington Avenue and Walnut Street, was discovered missing between three and four weeks ago.

The thief, or thieves, cut out the wood on which the basket was mounted. A bronze bonnet perched on the bench behind the apple basket was not taken.

The bench has since been removed and placed in storage.

The piece, including the bench and the two bronze sculptures, is valued at $10,000, parks officials said.
The city plans to replace the piece.

In July, a bronze piglet that also was part of the trail was stolen from in front of Pack Square. It was part of a set of animal sculptures that commemorated the Buncombe Turnpike.

The piglet has not yet been found.

Church leader gets 14 years
for molesting 3 children

A former church youth leader will spend at least 14 years and four months in prison after pleading guilty to seven counts of indecent liberties with a child.

Leonard Smith was sentenced Nov. 28 to 16-20 months in jail for each count of indecent liberties with a child that took place after 1994, when sentencing laws changed.

He also was sentenced to three years for each of the three counts that occured prior to 1994, with all sentences to be served consecutively.

The charges date back 20 years and involve three children. Three more serious charges, which were dropped in a plea bargain, involve incidents that go back to 1976.

Smith, 53, was music director and worked with youths at Sycamore Temple Church of God in Christ in Asheville.

In comments before sentencing, Smith said he was sorry to the family of his victims, but said he had never ìmanipulatedî any child in his care.

Homeless manís body found
under bush near highway

A police officer on foot patrol discovered the body of a homeless man under a bush downtown early last Thursday.

Donald Wayne Wilson, 54, of Candler was found dead under a bush near the Charlotte Street exit off of Interstate 240 about 5:15 a.m.

The officer discovered the body while checking some homeless camps in the area. Officials said there are no signs of foul play and that Wilson apparently died of natural causes.

UNCA campus police bust
alleged bicycle theft ring

UNC Asheville campus police last week detained and later issued arrest warrants for three people who allegedly admitted to stealing a bicycle from outside one of the schoolís dormitories.

Scott Hamilton Schaeffer, 31, of 1232 View Street; Elvis Vernon Walton, 25; and† Keith Jason Fleming, 39, have been charged with larceny and damage to property after police say they used bolt cutters to cut the lock of a bicycle outside the Governorís Hall dormitory.

Officer Shannon Green stopped the trio about 9:35 p.m. Nov. 26 while they were riding bikes on Broadway Street, just south of W. T. Weaver Boulevard.

Green had been tipped off that three men were stealing bikes from behind the dorm. He reportedly recognized the bike Fleming was riding as one of the bikes from the dorm, which Green had visited 20 minutes earlier on a separate report of bike theft.

Officer Erik Oian and Patrol Sgt. Bruce Martin also came to assist.†

Schaeffer informed Green that he was carrying a knife in his pocket and attempted to pull it out, at which point Green stopped him, handcuffed him, and told him he was not under arrest, according to the police report. Meanwhile, Oian, secured Fleming.

Martin found a black bag with bold cutters in it lying on the ground next to Fleming. All three men denied ownership of the bag.

After Green told Fleming that he recognized the stolen bike, Fleming reportedly confessed to stealing the bike.

Schaeffer and Walton also confessed to helping Fleming steal the bike by serving as† lookouts, according to the police report.
Oian and Green transported the three suspects back to the police station while Martin returned the bikes.

At the station, the three men all waived their Miranda rights by signing written waivers, according to the police report.

Shaeffer and Walton reportedly admitted to using hand-held radios to help Fleming steal the bike, while Fleming admitted to owning the bolt cutters and using them to break the lock and steal the bike, according to the report.

However, police were unable to identify the owner of the stolen bike. Under advisement from a magistrate, Green did not file charges until the victim could be located. However, he informed the suspects that he would be filing charges soon, issued a ban warning and transported them to Merrimon Avenue.

The bicycle owner subsequently was identified as Alexander Dehaven Jones, and the arrest warrants were issued last Wednesday.

Campus police did not indicate whether the men are suspected in any of a number of other recent bicycle thefts. Those include bikes taken from:

ï The Founders Hall Bike Rack on Nov. 13.
ï The Governorís Hall Bike Rack earlier on Nov. 26.
ï Highsmith Union last Wednesday.

No one injured in shooting
at exotic dancing nightclub

A shooting at an exotic dancing nightclub in East Asheville Nov. 26 resulted in no injuries or arrests.

Buncombe County Sheriffís Deputies and Asheville Police officers responded to a call around 2 a.m. about shots fired at the Trophy Club, 520 Swannanoa River Road.

When the officers arrived, a crowd dispersed. It is unclear how many people were involved in the fight or how many shots were fired.

3 police officers recognized
for anti-counterfeit efforts

Three Asheville police officers were recognized recently by N.C. Secretary of State Elaine E. Marshall for their efforts to combat the production and sale of counterfeited goods.

The Secretary of Stateís Office is charged with registration and enforcement of trademarks in North Carolina.

Lt. Joe Johnson and former Officer Dwight Arrowood, who recently moved to the Midwest, both received Marshallís 2007 Trademark Protector Awards.

The two officers were instrumental in efforts coordinated between the state and local law enforcement to arrest five alleged counterfeiters from Aug. 23-25. More than $300,000 worth of counterfeit goods was seized in those raids.

Marshall also appointed Asheville Police Officer Sonia Escobedo to the stateís Anti-Counterfeit Trademark Task Force, along with 32 other officers from across the state.

The task force was established in 2004 to help train officers in counterfeit detection and to enhance multi-agency coordination.
So far this year, $5.5 million in counterfeit goods have been seized across the state, according to Marshallís office.

More information about the awards announcement can be read at www.sonc.com.

City sets dates for program
to buy back residentsí guns

The Asheville Police Department is offering an opportunity for residents to turn in their guns and receive cash, no questions asked.

Residents who have a working gun in their possession may bring it to one of the locations below during the stated time periods.
Any individual turning in a gun will receive $50 for an operational handgun or long gun and $100 for an assault rifle.

Money will be paid only for guns that are fully functioning. No black-powder firearms will be accepted.

The program is aimed at reducing accidental injury, suicide, domestic violence and celebratory gunfire in the community.
Those individuals who may have fears about bringing firearms into a public space can contact APD Officer Germaine Weaver at 259-5660, who will arrange to meet with them privately.

The times and locations of the program are as follows:

ï Dec. 7 from 2-6 p.m.: Stephens-Lee Community Center, 30 George Washington Carver St.
ï Dec. 8 from 1-5 p.m.: Burton St. Community Center, 134 Burton St.†††
ï Dec. 14 from 1-5 p.m.: Shiloh Recreation Center, 121 Shiloh Road
ï Dec. 15 from 1 to 5 p.m.: Montford Community Center, 34 Pearson Drive.

The collected weapons will be destroyed, except for those deemed usable for APD training purposes.

The city has appropriated $25,000 to pay for the buy-back program. The Brad Daugherty Foundation and Eblen Foundation will accept donations to match the city appropriation.†