Monday, December 22, 2025
37.0°F

News Bites for May 26

CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 7 months AGO
by CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | May 25, 2023 5:41 PM

MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake man was booked into the Grant County Jail Tuesday on suspicion of vehicular assault and DUI after he allegedly struck a motorcycle and left the scene of the accident.

Brandon Miner, 37, was arrested near Road N NE after he abandoned his truck and fled on foot, according to a post from the Moses Lake Police Department.

The collision occurred at the intersection of Stratford Road and Sunny Drive at about 6 p.m. The motorcycle rider was thrown off the bike and the bike itself was stuck in the grill of the truck, the post said.

“Officers rendered aid to the injured cyclist until the (Moses Lake) Fire Department arrived, then began to search the area. The 20-year-old motorcyclist would later transported to the hospital with a head injury,” the post said.

“Miner drove several miles out of town before stopping and pulling the motorcycle off the front end of his pickup and continuing to flee,” the post said.

He abandoned his truck near Road N NE and Road 6.9 NE, fleeing on foot. Law enforcement officers found the truck and began searching for Miner.

“Miner slid down the concrete wall into a canal and hid near the water,” the post said.

Officers spotted and arrested him. He was also booked on suspicion of hit and run with injury, evidence tampering and obstructing.

In a separate incident, a Moses Lake woman was booked into the Grant County Jail Tuesday on suspicion of trafficking in stolen property after she allegedly tried to sell stolen metal parts to a Moses Lake recycling business.

Magaly Diaz Luna, 38, was arrested after she allegedly stole metal irrigation parts from a Moses Lake business and tried to sell them, wrote Kyle Foreman, public information officer for the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

Employees at the recycling business became suspicious when Luna brought the metal in for sale, having received notice from the irrigation business that parts had been stolen, Foreman wrote.

Employees at the irrigation business found a hole in the fence and several parts missing from a nearby pallet. The thefts apparently had occurred over the course of a couple months, he wrote. Subsequent investigation found Luna had sold parts to the recycling business several times in the past couple months. Employees from the irrigation business were able to identify the parts as having been taken from their business.

Employees at the recycling business delayed Luna’s departure until sheriff’s deputies arrived.

“Deputies credit area metal recyclers with maintaining a high incidence of suspicion when accepting scrap metal. Deputies also credit the communication between local businesses and recyclers to raise awareness when metal is stolen. This helps recyclers to be on the lookout for stolen metal that may come into their businesses,” Foreman wrote.

Luna was booked into jail on suspicion of first-degree trafficking in stolen property and second-degree possession of stolen property.

Foreman said both businesses are located in Moses Lake, but the GCSO was covering for the Moses Lake Police Department while the latter agency was having its annual meeting.

ARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER

Mattawa to work on sewer, water projects in 2026
December 22, 2025 3 a.m.

Mattawa to work on sewer, water projects in 2026

MATTAWA — The city of Mattawa has budgeted to spend about $200,000 more in its current expense (general) fund in 2026 than it is projected to receive in revenue. Expenses for all departments are projected to be slightly higher than revenues, and as a result Mattawa is projected to have slightly less money in at the end of 2026 than it does at the beginning of the year.

Three arrested in Royal City area thefts case
December 19, 2025 1:28 p.m.

Three arrested in Royal City area thefts case

ROYAL CITY — Three men were arrested and booked into the Grant County Jail on suspicion of possessing stolen property after a search was served on a home near Beverly Thursday.

More park improvements planned for Royal City in ‘26
December 19, 2025 3 a.m.

More park improvements planned for Royal City in ‘26

ROYAL CITY — Lions Park in Royal City now has a soccer field, so city officials will be working on the next phase of improvements in 2026. The first phase of upgrades to Apple Avenue also is scheduled for 2026, and both are among the projects reflected in the city’s 2026 budget. The budget was approved by Royal City City Council members Tuesday.