By Mary Jane Farmer for the Van Alstyne News, Scene In Town
During the week between Jan. 24-30, Van Alstyne Police answered 284 calls for service, resulting in nine police reports; seven offense reports; three motor vehicle crashes, two with minor injuries; and five arrests.
On Sunday, Jan. 24, Van Alstyne Fire Department answered a fire call on the east side of town, and had assistance from fire departments from Tom Bean, Westminster, Gunter, and Howe. And, while all VA firefighters are also paramedics, all on duty were at the fire when they also got a call of a motorcycle having turned over near that scene. Fire Chief Ryan Dockery said that Gunter EMS took that call and carried that victim to get him medical attention.
The fire, he said was on property which held several vehicles. Some agencies sent other fire engines, which directly battle fires, and others sent fire tenders — vehicles which carry a large capacity of water. At these scenes, the tenders transfer their water supplies to the engines, then return to their designated hydrants to fill the tenders back up again. An on-going process so that the fire fight never slows down. It is teamwork maximizing every firefighter and every piece of equipment available.
In all, Van Alstyne firefighters spent about three hours at the scene, Dockery said, before declaring it under control.
Van Alstyne Police Administrative Sgt. Steve Hayslip encourages that, if there are other victims of the suspect VA Police arrested 11 days ago on four counts of sexual assault of a child and three similar charges, that those victims contact police and bring the crime(s) against him/her/them to police attention. The suspect, a Denison man, remains incarcerated in Grayson County Jail in lieu of $1,500,000 bail. Hayslip said, “(The suspect) is also facing similar charges from other agencies in Grayson County as well.”
VA Police Detective Dale Ingram can be reached at 903-482-5251.
Hayslip also reported on the five arrests police officers made during the week.
Arrest — About 10:15 p.m., Jan. 26, officers were dispatched to a welfare concern on Henry Hynds (U.S. Highway 75 service road) and Sanford Circle regarding a welfare concern. There, they found a man lying on the ground and that he had been struck by a vehicle which then fled the scene. VA EMS transported the victim to a nearby hospital for treatment.
During the resulting investigation, police identified a Van Alstyne man as the driver, located the suspect and placed him under arrest on charges of accident causing serious bodily injury. The jailing was on Jan. 28, and the suspect posted bail of $10,000 in surety bonds for his release the same day.
Arrest — During that same time frame, while officers were working the crime scene, a vehicle drove around the police barricade. An officer caught up with the offending vehicle and made a traffic stop, then identified the driver as a Howe man, and soon determined the suspect was intoxicated.
The suspect was jailed on a count of DWI, 2nd Offense. A magistrate at the jail set his bail at $3,000, with conditions attached, and the suspect paid that later the same day, Jan. 27, as his incarceration.
Arrest — On Jan. 28, about 10 p.m., a caller reported to dispatch of a reckless driver on U.S. 75, who in turn sent police to the scene. Hayslip said the officers located the described vehicle and got in behind it. They watched as the vehicle’s driver could not maintain it in a single lane and initiated a traffic stop. The driver, Hayslip said, was determined to have been driving while intoxicated and with an open container.
At the Grayson County Jail, the arresting officer charged the driver, a Pottsboro man, with DWI/open container. The suspect posted bail of $1,500 in surety bonds for his release the next day.
Arrest — On Jan. 29, about 7:30 a.m., officers were dispatched to a suspicious circumstance in the 500 block of Kelly Lane. There, they found the person, a pedestrian, described by the caller and, while talking with him, police could smell “a strong odor of an intoxicating beverage,” Hayslip said. “The subject was unsteady on his feet and almost fell several times.”
Police jailed the suspect, a Sherman man, on a charge of public intoxication. The suspect posted cash bail of $292 on Jan. 30.
Arrest — About 11 p.m. Jan. 29, police initiated a traffic stop on U.S. 75 at County Line Road, after the officer saw that the vehicle’s license plate was unreadable. The driver, a Dallas man, was found to be a convicted felon, yet in possession of a firearms and of marijuana. Police placed him under arrest on charges of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm and Possess of Marijuana less than two ounces.
The suspected posted a total of $11,500 bail in surety bonds for his release on Jan. 30.
Calls for Service — The calls for service to which Van Alstyne police responded this week, as shown on a public information daily report provided by Grayson County Sheriff’s Office, included other welfare concerns, harassment, traffic hazards on U.S. 75, loose livestock, reckless drivers also on U.S. 75.
GCSO dispatchers are the receivers of 9-1-1 calls placed for Van Alstyne fire, medical, and police assistance. In return, they relay the information to Van Alstyne dispatchers, who then notify the needed agency. Calls made directly to Van Alstyne dispatchers, (903-482-5251) go directly to the local agency.