Police Blotter
District attorney gets fatal bus accident case
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The investigation of a March 20 case in which a 2-year-old Grovetown child was fatally struck by a school bus has been forwarded to the District Attorney's Office for further review, Columbia County sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris said Monday.
Kole A. Ford, of the 400 block of Wilkins Road, Grovetown, died instantly after he either ran in front of or under the school bus as it pulled away from a stop in front of his home on a narrow, private dirt road, authorities say.
The investigation focused on how the incident occurred and whether any charges should be filed against the parties involved in the incident.
The bus, No. 215, serves Brookwood Elementary School and was driven by Candy Hammett, 37, of Grovetown. District Attorney Danny Craig said his office has received the investigation and will determine what, if any, prosecution is warranted.
Fire destroys mobile home in Grovetown
A Grovetown family of five was displaced after their mobile home was destroyed in a fire Saturday.
Shortly before 4 p.m., firefighters were called to a mobile home park in the 3500 block of Gordon Highway, according to Martinez Fire Department spokeswoman Honey Shore.
Winds threatened to spread the blaze, but firefighters got it under control soon after arrival, Shore said.
Along with the home, all of the family's belongings were destroyed, she said. Authorities believe an electrical problem might have sparked the blaze.
If you would like to make a donation to the family, call the Martinez Fire Department at (706) 863-7745, Shore said.
Trucker faces charges in Lincolnton man's death
A Norcross, Ga., man has been charged with second degree vehicular homicide in connection to a March 16 wreck in which a Lincolnton, Ga., man was seriously injured and later died.
Joseph Anthony Triola, 26, of Norcross, was arrested on Thursday and also charged with failure to yield the right of way, according to jail records.
Triola, driving a Controlled Blasting Inc. truck, was turning left from Columbia Road onto Appling-Harlem Highway. Police say Triola drove the flatbed truck carrying explosive material into the path of a van driven by Thomas Poss, 74, of Lincolnton, and the vehicles collided.
Poss, who had to be extricated and airlifted to Medical College of Georgia Hospital, died March 29. Triola was released from the Columbia County Detention Center after posting a $2,200 bond, jail records indicated.
The following accounts were taken from reports filed with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office:
Grovetown man reports online theft by deception
A Grovetown man told police Friday that he had been deceived out of more than $1,600 while trying to purchase a motorcycle online.
The man said he had made contact with someone trying to sell a motorcycle on eBay on April 4. After agreeing on the price, the man said he used Western Union to send $1,650 to Key Largo, Fla., as a deposit to the seller and another man, as instructed, so the motorcycle would be shipped.
The man said he then contacted the seller, who gave him a Yellow Freight tracking number for the motorcycle. When the man called Yellow Freight the next day to confirm the shipment, a company representative informed him there was no record of a shipment for him and the tracking number was fake.
When he tried to contact the seller again, the man said all he got was a full voice mail box.
Woman reports identity fraud
A Martinez woman called police recently after receiving a W-2 form from an employer she never worked for.
The 18-year-old woman told police she received the W-2 from National Med-Staff Inc. showing that she had earned $364.44 in 2006 and paid a total of $38.71 in taxes.
The woman said she had never been employed by the company and does not recognize the wage amount as any earnings she had in 2006.
The form, the woman said, had her correct Social Security number and her current address. She told police she believes someone has been fraudulently using her personal information and will check her credit history report to verify whether it has happened on other occasions.
Martinez-Columbia Fire Rescue Activity Report for the week of April 1-7 :
Structure fires, 10; vehicle fires, two; wood/brush/ grass fires, five; dumpster fire, one; controlled/unauthorized burns, five; other fire, one; activated fire alarms, 13; medical incidents, 20; vehicle accidents, six; rescue incident, one; electrical incident, one; investigate various incidents, seven; and assist citizens, three.