Newspaper Page Text
On The Record
The
Commerce News
APRIL 8, 2009
PAGE 7 A
Nicholson Man Faces Drug, Gun Charges
Goats' Milk, Yogurt, Biscuits
Don't Appeal To Thief
Breaking Into Truck Trailer
A 25-year-old Nicholson
man faces drug and
weapons charges follow
ing a traffic stop made
by the Commerce Police
Department last week.
The officer who made the
stop on the Ila Road spot
ted a black handgun on the
center console, called for
backup and approached
the vehicle with his service
weapon drawn, according
to the arrest report.
The officer ordered James
Michael Jones of 4110
Crabapple Hollow Road,
Nicholson, out of his vehi
cle. When the second offi
cer arrived, that officer pat
ted Jones down, the report
said. In the process, the
officer said he felt a soft,
squishy package in Jones’
right front pants pocket.
When he asked the sus
pect what it was, Jones alleg
edly replied that he didn’t
know.
The package turned out to
be a plastic bag containing
a “rock-like substance’’ that
tested positive for metham-
phetamine.
Officers also recovered a
black 9 mm handgun, a 9
mm magazine with 18 bul-
Jackson Electric
Membership Corporation
(EMC) is cautioning mem
bers to be aware of a new
phone scam that’s tricked
some Georgia utility con
sumers into compromising
their credit card numbers
in an effort to keep their
lets and a .45 caliber maga
zine with seven bullets.
Jones was charged with
possession of methamphet-
amine and possession of a
firearm during the commis
sion of a crime.
Other Charges
Others arrested or cited
during the past week
include:
•Alexander Alberto
McCollum, 21, 2889 Jordon
St„ Haleyville, AL, driving
with an expired tag, no
insurance and driving with
a suspended license.
• Leonard William Moore,
52, 1191 S. Elm Street,
Commerce, simple battery,
criminal trespass and driv
ing under the influence
(DUI) of alcohol. The report
contained no explanation
of the charges.
• Mack Arthur Collins, 53,
1326 Hwy. 326, Commerce,
picked up in Cornelia on an
unspecified local warrant.
• JosephEmanuel Makuet,
30, 955 Glynn Oaks Drive,
Clarkston, picked up at the
Dekalb County Jail on a fail
ure to appear warrant.
•Sherri Allison McCoy,
25, 613 Chatham Road,
Homer, a headlight viola-
power on.
Though Jackson EMC
customers so far appear
unaffected, some Georgia
utility customers this week
are reporting fraudulent
phone calls from persons
claiming to be a utility
employee and demanding
tion and driving with a sus
pended license.
•Rome Jefferson Manus,
61, 1262 Marlow Drive,
Jefferson, on a probation
violation warrant from Hall
County.
•Fredy Pablo Arguelles
Lopez, 30, 3 West Parker
Road, Greenville, SC, speed
ing (87 mph on 1-85) and
driving without a license.
•Jerry Lee Gillespie, 43,
572 Woodpecker Lane,
Nicholson, simple battery
after he allegedly grabbed
a 35-year-old white female
by the neck and threw her
to the ground at 10:50 p.m.
at the intersection of East
Cordes Place and Martin
Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The report said Gillespie
claimed the woman hit him
in the face with a bottle, but
that a witness corroborated
the victim’s statement that
Gillespie was the aggressor.
•James Louis Sellers, 18,
P.O. Box 436, Danielsville,
misdemeanor possession
of marijuana and failure to
wear a seat belt. An officer
allegedly found two par
tially smoked joints in the
vehicle’s ash tray.
•Brian A. Burkhardt, 30,
credit card information to
prevent immediate discon
nection. In a few instances,
customers have provided
the perpetrator with credit
card information that was
then used to fraudulently
wire money to Alabama.
Though Jackson EMC
1561 Hwy. 164, Commerce,
speeding, DUI, reck
less driving and driving
with a suspended license.
When he was pulled over
for doing 91 mph on the
bypass, Burkhardt told the
officer his speedometer was
broken and he was hungry
and was on his way to the
Waffle House. He also alleg
edly admitted drinking “six,
eight, 12 beers.’’
•Jayson Maston Hol
brooks, 28, 16 Cobblestone
Court, Commerce, arrested
on a Jefferson warrant for
failure to appear after his
vehicle was pulled over for
a seat belt violation.
• Matthew A. Foretich,
19, 230 Woodscape Court,
Alpharetta, speeding and
misdemeanor possession of
marijuana. The officer, who
pulled him over for doing
68 on the bypass, noted the
smell of marijuana. He alleg
edly found a plastic contain
er of marijuana and a glass
pipe in the glove box. The
report said Foretich claimed
the drugs belonged to his
girlfriend, whose vehicle he
was driving, and who had
been smoking marijuana in
the vehicle earlier.
has yet to receive reports
of any similar calls placed
to members, employees
were this week advised to
remain alert to suspicious
activity and report any sim
ilar customer complaints or
inquiries to their supervi
sors.
A thief who broke into
the trailer of an 18-wheel
rig parked near Interstate
85 didn’t do his home
work.
The Commerce Police
Department investigated
the incident, which took
place at Fuel Mart. The
owner said he parked
the truck at 7 p.m. and
checked it at 11 p.m.
because he’d had prob
lems with the refrigeration
unit. He returned at 9 a.m.
the next day and found
that someone had cut the
hasp around the lock and
entered the vehicle.
The trailer was full of
goats’ milk, yogurt and
biscuits. According to the
report, the thief opened
one container of yogurt,
but apparently decided
not to remove anything as
nothing was missing.
Other Incidents
Other incidents investi
gated by police last week
include:
• a burglary at Alzheimer’s
Care of Commerce, Bolton
Drive, in which a 45-year-
old white male employee
discovered someone had
broken into a vacant room
through a window. Police
found muddy footprints,
and other workers said
they’d heard something at
about 1 a.m. but thought
it was the rain. The report
did not indicate whether
anything was taken.
•forgery reported by a
customer of First Covenant
Bank. A bank vice presi
dent said the bank had
received word that a $4,898
check paid by River Stone
Homeowners Association
to a 57-year-old white male
from Atlanta who present
ed the check at the bank
was no good. The bank has
the name of a suspect and
his photo.
•financial card fraud or
identity theft reported by
a 61-year-old white male
who said he received a
phone call from a credit
card company saying he
had an outstanding debt
he needed to take care of.
The man told police he did
not have that company’s
credit card. When police
found out that the caller
did not tell the man an
amount, they advised him
to get a copy of his credit
report and speculated that
the call could be a scam
attempt.
•the towing of a pickup
truck after a traffic stop for
a noise ordinance violation
when the truck’s registra
tion turned out to be can
celled .
NEED
PRINTING?
CALL
706-367-5233
Jackson EMC: Be Wary Of New Utility Phone Scam
WANTED
April 18th, 2009
Hosted by the Braselton BVBA, YearOne, and the
Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce
To register call
706-387-0300
or visit us at www.jacksoncountyga.com
Hurry - Registration Ends Soon!
t
JACKSON COUNTY
AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Located at YearOne
Braselton TechCenter
Hwy. 53, east of 1-85 Exit 129
Public Safety Awareness and
Law Enforcement Day
X
Event hours: 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.
• 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Jackson County Chamber of
Commerce Chili Cook off
• 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Car show registration
• 7:30 p.m. Car Show awards ceremony followed
by the Burnout Exhibition
Spectator: Free
Car Show entry fee: $10
Braselton Bash 2009 Schedule
Car Show Events & Activities:
May 16, 2009
June 20, 2009
July 18, 2009
August 15, 2009
September 19, 2009
November 14, 2009
5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
5 p.m. - 9 p.m.
12 p.m. - 8 p.m.
2 p.m. - 6 p.m.
'Tentative schedule/ Times subject to change
• All makes and models welcome
• Participant vote top 25 cars with awards
presented
• Prize drawings
• Food Vendors
• Family Activities
• Free Kid's Play Area (Presented by: Hometown
Community Bank)
• Leave Your Mark BFGoodrich Burnout
Exhibition
• Interactive DUI Demonstration by Gainesville
Police Department
• Braselton Police Department
• West Jackson Fire & Rescue
• Planned appearances by Life Flight and
Georgia State Patrol Helicopters
Braselton Bash Supporters:
111" M
hometown BFGoodrich
COMMUNITY
BANK
THE IXDISTRIAL DEPOT
OFFICIAL HARDWARE
1-800-932-7663