The Blotter: Phone scammer impersonates police

March 22

A student was reported passed out on Thirteenth Street, the caller suspected from drug use.  A man was reported walking towards Columbia Falls with a bow and arrow spear set up, the man was contacted by law enforcement and stated he was performing a ceremony. 

March 23

Railroad crossing arms were not working, down with no train coming. They were fixed. 

March 24

A driver on Railroad Street was cited for using a New York license while being a Montana resident since 2018. A man in dark clothes was trespassed for loitering around a Ninth Street business.  

March 25

A car accident on Nucleus Avenue was reported, unknown injuries. An ongoing issue of a dog barking was reported on Eleventh Avenue. 

March 27

A non-injury car accident was reported in the Burger King parking lot. A vinyl fence was reported damaged on Karen Road. A door-to-door salesman was reported on Eleventh Avenue suspected of casing properties, found to just be doing his job. A mountain lion reportedly killed and ate a deer in a Vans Avenue driveway. 

March 28

Disorderly behavior was reported on Fifth Avenue with the caller’s son in law allegedly destroying the house while the rest of the family was at another location, including removing the Ring camera from the wall. 

March 29

Fraud was reported after the caller sent $2,000 to someone posing as a police officer. A group of young people in a late ‘90s Jeep Cherokee were reported shouting threats on Nucleus Avenue. A verbal dispute between a man and woman on Nucleus Avenue. 

March 30

On Third Avenue, a roommate’s possessions, including a laptop, were left outside the building for them to pickup and the laptop was reported missing. An injured deer, which appeared to have been attacked by a predator, was put down. A gun was reported stolen from a vehicle on Seventh Street. On Fourth Avenue, a lemonade stand run by young children was found to be selling beer, the suspect was reprimanded by their grandmother rather than law enforcement. A woman called in her husband on First Street for allegedly yelling and throwing her belongings when she said she was going to sleep in the kid’s room. 

March 31

A welfare check was called on an older man with a red bike who seemed to have memory issues, he was returned to Beehive Assisted Living. A customer under the influence at Smith’s dropped marijuana and a white crystallized powder on the floor, which were collected by law enforcement. A suicide threat was called in on Meadow Lake Boulevard. 

April 1

Fraud was reported again regarding a scammer impersonating Columbia Falls Police Department, this time the caller lost around $1,400. A drone was reported flown near power lines on Eleventh Avenue. A father and son got into a physical altercation over the dishes on First Street. 

April 2

Attempted phone fraud was reported, again with police impersonations. A runaway juvenile was reported on Third Avenue, 16-year-old white male with blonde hair and blue eyes, tattoo on forearm of face. 

April 5

Extra patrols were requested on Twelfth Avenue after a man threatened to beat up the caller and also showed up at his place of work. A man in a wheelchair was returned to Montana Veterans Home from Darlene Road after attempting to go to Super 1 and refusing to go back on his own. A white minivan was reported in a motor vehicle hit and run on Third Street. Extra patrols were sent to Thirteenth Street when a man chased a woman from the Junior High parking lot across the railroad tracks. A woman on Scenic Drive requested a civil standby while she collected her things after being pushed outside and told to leave. 

April 6

A motor vehicle hit and run was reported on Third Street. The theft of tools and jewelry were reported from Third Avenue. 

April 7

A found bike was returned to its owner on Sixth Avenue.