Deputy’s report: Domestic incidents, missing boy found

The following are excerpts from just some of the reports recently generated by the Texas County Sheriff’s Department:

• A deputy was dispatched at about 11 a.m. May 24 regarding a report of a domestic incident between a 50-year-old man and 37-year-old woman at a Highway AW residence at Plato.

The officer made contact with the woman, who said she wanted to go to the hospital, but the man wouldn’t let her.

The officer then spoke with the man, who said the woman “ate meth” and was causing problems.

The man had an outstanding Texas County warrant for a traffic violation and was taken to the Texas County Jail. The woman was taken to a hospital by an ambulance.

• Stephen Podest, 44, of 8900 Highway E in Houston, was issued a citation for operating a motor vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner on June 6.

At about 12:05 p.m., a deputy on patrol on Highway DD near Houston noticed a vehicle cross the center line in the officer’s lane.

The officer had to drive partially into a ditch to avoid being hit, and the other vehicle passed by traveling on the wrong side of the roadway.

The deputy turned around and conducted a traffic stop, and made contact with the driver, Podest, who said he had something in his eye.

• At about 10:10 p.m. May 9, a deputy responded to a report of a domestic disturbance involving a 29-year-old man and 28-year-old woman at a Brown Hill Road residence at Houston.

Upon arrival, the officer heard a woman screaming inside the house and entered forcibly through a back door. The officer then made contact with the man, who was out of breath and sweating, and detained him.

The woman was then observed crying and shaking on a bed in a back bedroom. She told the officer the man had tried to break her phone after a verbal argument started, and when she tried to stop him, he threw her down and choked her on the floor.

The woman said when she tried to leave, the man blocked the door and prevented her. She showed the officer video of the man yelling at her to leave, and then stopping her when she tried.

The woman said she was finally able to exit and get into her vehicle, but the man hit her car with a metal bar and a car battery as she left. The officer noted observing a large dent in a rear quarter panel, and also saw the damaged screen on the woman’s phone.

The woman told the deputy that the man called her after she left and begged her to return. She said she did, but another incident ensued involving the man wielding a knife and making threats.

The man was taken to jail and a probable cause statement was sent to the county prosecutor.

• A deputy was dispatched May 10 regarding a report of a 6-year-old boy missing from a Shelton Road residence at Elk Creek.

The officer made contact with the boy’s 46-year-old father, who said the child was playing in the yard and ran off when nobody was watching. The deputy and several other first responders conducted a search of the area. The boy has been known to run away before (three times), so local spots where he had been found before were checked. The boy was found in good condition walking down a path in a wooded area near the house.

The man was advised of ways to avoid further incidents of the boy running away. The man stated the boy usually wears a GPS device that allows him to be tracked, but it was charging and he didn’t have it on him this time.