Police Blotter
Methamphetamine bust at Martinez motel
Two Martinez men and an Evans woman were arrested Dec. 21 and accused of operating a methamphetamine lab out of two rooms at a Martinez motel, police said.
Russell Hinton, 42, of Martinez, was charged with manufacturing methamphetamine. Travis Fredrick Lever, 34, of Martinez, and Susannah Michelle Chance, 37, of Evans, were charged with manufacturing methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine and possession of marijuana, Columbia County sheriff's Maj. Rick Whitaker said.
The three are being detained at the Columbia County Detention Center.
At about 8:30 a.m., narcotics and vice investigators with the sheriff's office searched two rooms of the Georgia Inn at 434 S. Belair Road, Whitaker said.
"When they went in, they discovered a fully operational meth lab in two of the rooms," Whitaker said.
"They had all the ingredients and equipment, but I don't know exactly how much of the product (investigators) were able to recover," he said.
Several of the surrounding rooms were evacuated until it was determined conditions were safe for guests to return, Whitaker said.
The following accounts were taken from reports filed with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office.
Harlem woman charged with obstruction
A Harlem woman already accused of disorderly conduct has been charged with obstruction of a law enforcement officer after police say she struck a deputy jailer Dec. 21.
Tiffany Renee Banks, 25, of the 1600 block of Watson Bailey Road, was charged with disorderly conduct, obstruction of a law enforcement officer and interference with government property and released from the Columbia County Detention Center on Dec. 21 on $7,975 bond.
Banks began yelling and refused to obey a jailer's order for her to exit the inmate intake area and enter a holding cell, police reports say.
Deputy Sharon Smith stated in the report that she tried to take Banks by her right arm to lead her into a holding cell when Banks pulled away and stuck the deputy in the chest.
A second deputy was called in and helped take Banks to a cell.
Jewelry is missing from two Evans homes
Police responded Dec. 21 to reports of jewelry missing from two Evans homes.
An Evans retiree said someone broke into his home and stole thousands of dollars in jewelry while he was out of town Dec. 8-16.
During that time, he said, more than $6,700 in gold jewelry was stolen from his home in the 4000 block of Derryclare Lane.
The items included a wedding ring set containing 3 karats total weight in diamonds, a blue sapphire ring, two gold tennis bracelets and a gold-and-diamond necklace.
There were no signs of forced entry to the home, and the man said he did not know how someone might have entered.
Also on Dec. 21, an Evans woman living in the 4500 block of Ridge Pine Drive told police jewelry has been disappearing from her home during the past six months.
The 42-year-old told police she first noticed a diamond solitaire necklace missing in June.
Since then, she told police, she discovered a 14 karat gold bracelet missing from a dresser drawer in October and a gold chain bracelet and three rings missing Dec. 3.
The value of the items totaled more than $6,000.
97-year-old Appling woman robbed by men
A 97-year-old Appling woman said her wallet, some cash and a signed check were missing after two men posing as electrical workers entered her home Dec. 20.
The woman said the two men, who claimed to be from "the power company" came to her house at about 5:15 p.m. to "check the wiring."
One of the men, described as white and 6 feet tall with a slender build, sat with the woman and talked with her while the other man "checked the wiring."
After about 15 minutes, as the men were leaving, the man in red began asking about the woman's walker.
The woman said the man began to examine the walker. After they left, she saw her wallet, containing $50 and the check, was gone.
Several similar incidents have been reported in the Augusta area during the past two weeks.