Crime & Rescue TWO INJURED IN PARACHUTE CRASH Two men suffered leg injuries in a powered parachute crash in Manistee
County. Sheriff’s deputies responded at 8pm May 29 to Viaduct Road in Clean Township, where the pilot of the flying contraption had failed to gain sufficient altitude upon taking off in a field and crashed into a tree. The pilot, a 49-year-old Copemish man, was taken to Munson Medical Center with a possible broken leg. The passenger, a 44-year-old Buckley man, complained of numbness in his legs and also was taken to Munson. ORV DRIVER KILLED An Honor man who left his home at 1am on an ORV and never returned was found dead the next morning. State police were called to Oviatt Road near Blohm Road in Platte Township May 26 after the man’s family discovered the 49-year-old was missing. When the man’s family searched for him, they discovered his ORV was gone. Later, they located him deceased in the woods at 10am. Investigators believe the man drove into a mailbox and a woodpile, was ejected from the ORV, and lost his helmet in the crash. Police said alcohol and speed were factors. TWO BUSTED FOR SCHOOL DAMAGE Wexford County Sheriff’s deputies spotted two suspects fleeing a Buckley Schools building and arrested them for vandalism Deputies conducted a property check on a building at 1:16am May 27 and discovered a broken window. While circling the exterior, they saw two suspects exit the building, prompting a short foot chase. Deputies initially lost sight of the suspects, but after a three-hour search located them in the Village of Buckley. The two men, ages 23 and 24, were arrested for malicious destruction of property and resisting arrest. DRIVER KILLED IN CRASH A man died after his pickup was struck by an oncoming car that was attempting to pass another vehicle. Antrim County Sheriff’s deputies were called to U.S.-31 near Erickson Road in Milton Township at 11:05pm May 26. The driver of a 2018 Acura attempted to pass another car northbound when it struck the oncoming pickup. The Acura ended up in a ditch, and the pickup was struck by a southbound semi, sending that vehicle into a ditch before it caught fire. The driver of the pickup — whose name was withheld pending an identification through an autopsy — was pronounced dead at the scene. Two passengers from the Acura and the semi driver were taken to Munson Medical Center with injuries. The crash closed U.S.-31 for several hours. DRIVER KILLED IN CRASH A 49-year-old driver was partially ejected in a single-vehicle crash and was killed. Wexford County Sheriff’s deputies responded
by patrick sullivan psullivan@northernexpress.com
at 12:30am May 28 to E 16 Road, near N 27 Road, where a driver ran off the road and struck several trees. The deceased was identified as Manton resident Michael Pettengill. He was the sole occupant of the vehicle. CHILD RUN OVER AND KILLED A father accidentally ran over his 2-year-old daughter at a kayak launch, causing the toddler’s death. Missaukee County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the area of the Falmouth Dam in Clam Union Township May 28 at 1:11pm, where Josie Thompson was pronounced dead at the scene. The family came from Marion, deputies said. MUNSON LOCKED DOWN OVER THREAT Munson Medical Center went on lockdown when a 50-year-old man camping in Clare County allegedly threatened to “shoot up” the hospital. Brian Douglas Adcox was charged with terrorism after he allegedly called the Munson switchboard at 3:30pm May 26 and ranted that crazy people were driving trucks into large crowds, saying that healthcare workers were responsible, Traverse City Police said. Investigators tracked the call to Adcox, who was camping in Clare County and was known to the sheriff’s department there; he had been arrested on an unrelated charge and released on bond a day earlier. Adcox was arraigned in Grand Traverse County May 29 and was held on $2 million bond.
MAN SUSPECTED OF CAR THEFT The owner of a car dealership did not want to press charges after someone was caught repeatedly taking cars from the lot and returning them. Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s deputies responded at 5pm May 25 to a used car dealership on Commerce Drive in Blair Township and determined someone had driven off in a 2014 GMC Denali. Staff at the dealership also noticed some other cars were out of place and that there was a Subaru in the lot that wasn’t supposed to be there. Deputies determined the Subaru had been reported stolen in the previous week from a Garfield Township residence. As deputies investigated, a 32-year-old Traverse City man returned in the Denali and admitted he’d taken the vehicle; he also admitted that he’d used and returned other vehicles in the lot because he had been down on his luck and needed transportation. The suspect was arrested for unlawful driving away of a vehicle, but he may or may not ultimately be charged — the owner of the car dealership told deputies that he felt bad for the guy and didn’t want to press charges.
When officers arrived — with state police and Emmet County Sheriff’s deputies as backup — they found the suspect on the roof of a home bleeding badly. Officers determined the suspect was unarmed and reached him by ladder. By the time they reached him, he was unconscious and, despite efforts to revive the man, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators determined that the 36-year-old Saginaw man had injured himself when he broke into the home and then injured himself again while breaking out of a second-story window to exit the home. The man had recently been working in Petoskey.
BURGLAR BLEEDS TO DEATH ON ROOF A homeowner called Petoskey Police after spotting someone covered in blood, attempting to break into their home.
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WOMAN JUMPS TO DEATH A 25-year-old Frankfort woman was killed when she apparently jumped from a moving vehicle in rural Benzie County. Sheriff’s deputies said alcohol was a factor in the incident, which claimed the life of Brittany Laura Piper. Piper jumped from a vehicle that was travelling on Grace Road in Gilmore Township May 28. The incident was reported at 9:47pm and deputies arrived and attempted to save the woman until Benzie EMS arrived, but Piper was pronounced dead at the scene.
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Northern Express Weekly • june 04, 2018 • 7