Woman arrested for suspected check fraud

A disabled woman who hired someone to work part time for her, discovered that the helper had reportedly helped herself to a couple of checks.

The victim hired the 49-year-old taxi driver to do errands for her and for six months things apparently ran smoothly. But then the victim was going through her bank statement and found two checks made out to her helper – one for $600 on Feb. 1 and another for $450 on Feb. 7. On both checks, the suspect has written the word “loan” on the subject line. The victim didn’t make the checks out nor did she sign them.

During a chat with a deputy, the suspect said the victim had loaned her $1,800.

Deputies arrested Lisa Hyde, 49, of Sonoma, and charged her with felony forgery, felony make or possess fraudulent checks, felony grand theft and felony theft of an elder dependent adult over $400 and transported her to the county jail.

In other incidents reported recently to Valley law enforcement:

Monday, Feb. 9:

5:09 p.m. – Laptop goes missing. A Redwood City resident reported that during a visit to Santa Rosa and three wineries in the Valley, his Mac laptop went missing. He told Sheriff’s deputies he was getting a ping from the computer’s GPS somewhere in El Verano. The man said he locked his vehicle at each stop and there were no signs of forced entry. He also told deputies that he had disabled the computer remotely, so he was no longer picking up a signal. A deputy went to the area around Solano Avenue and knocked on doors, but nobody had the stolen laptop.

Thursday, Feb. 12:

12:38 a.m. – Attempted burglary. A resident in the 17000 block of Summer Meadow Lane reported that she had gone out to dinner at about 5 p.m. that afternoon, but couldn’t set the alarm in her house. When she returned, she found damage and pry marks on the back door and one of the alarm sensors hanging loose. She told the deputies who she suspected. But nothing was taken.

11:46 a.m. – Tires slashed. A resident in the 17000 block of Highland Boulevard reported that sometime over night, someone slashed all four tires on her vehicle. The resident also had some tires slashed in December. There is no suspect information.

10:52 p.m. – I guess it is my knife after all. While on patrol in the 18000 block of Highway 12, a deputy saw a vehicle with a known probationer as a passenger. The vehicle had a broken taillight, so the deputy stopped it. When he asked the passenger to step out of the car, the deputy spotted a fixed-blade knife sticking out from under the seat. The deputy also found a second fixed-blade knife but the passenger denied they were his. The driver told the deputy that the knives weren’t in the car before she picked up the passenger and that the passenger took them out of a backpack and shoved them under the seat. As part of the terms of his probation, the passenger wasn’t allowed to possess any weapons. At one point, the passenger admitted to the deputy that the knives were indeed his. Jason Kurtz, 34, of Sonoma, was charged with felony possession of a concealed dirk or dagger and a felony probation violation. Kurtz was booked into county jail.

Friday, Feb. 13:

7:11 a.m. – Stolen dump truck. Sometime overnight, someone got into a winery in the 25000 block of Arnold Drive and stole a $35,000 rented dump truck from one contractor, a table saw and a compressor from a second and seven rolls of wire valued at $1,600 from a third contractor. The winery didn’t have surveillance cameras.

Monday, Feb. 16:

3:46 p.m. – Battling step-brothers. An argument between a pair of step-brothers who don’t get along turned physical twice. The first time deputies were sent to the residence in the 100 block of Vista Drive, the step-brothers had fought, but when one grabbed a knife, the other one fled. Deputies told the pair that one would have to leave the residence until things cooled down. But deputies were called back at 3:46 p.m. when the pair were at it again, one armed with a knife and the other with a baseball bat. Deputies learned that the one with the baseball bat had broken four windows in the other’s vehicle, and then broke five windows in the residence. Deputies arrested both of the combatants and charged them with identical offenses. Ronald Cotter, 18, of Sonoma, and Jordan McCoy, 23, of Sonoma, were both charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon, not a firearm, and booked into county jail.

Thursday, Feb. 19:

6:01 p.m. – Wine boxes missing. A winery in the 24000 block of Ramal Road reported 14 white picking boxes and a speaker system for chasing away birds had been stolen – sometime between Oct. 15 and Nov. 15. The reporting party didn’t notice the thefts until about Dec. 10. The speaker system was valued at $3,500 while the 14 boxes, at $270 each, were valued at $3,780.

Friday, Feb. 20:

10:14 a.m. – Funny money. A visitor from Gazelle, Siskiyou County, was in the drive-up window at Jack in the Box and paid with what turned out to be a counterfeit $20. The man pulled into the parking lot to await a police unit. He told the police that they (his family) had been at a Walmart in Williams earlier and he thought the $20 was part of the change he received for his $100. The Secret Service and the Sheriff’s Property Crimes Unit were notified, and the man continued on his way – minus the faux $20.

Saturday, Feb. 21:

12:05 a.m. – Alcohol-fueled argument. Officers responded to a domestic disturbance in the 700 block of Oregon Street. A woman called to report that her husband was pushing her around. The couple, both of whom were intoxicated, had been arguing and he reportedly pushed her. The 67-year-old husband received a ride to county jail on charges of domestic violence battery.

6:16 p.m. – More alcohol-fueled fighting. Police were sent to the Sonoma Valley Inn for a report of another battling couple. The couple had been dating for about six months and an alcohol-fueled argument led to some pushing and shoving. The female begged the police not to arrest her boyfriend, but the police explained that they didn’t have any choice. The 39-year-old San Jose resident was arrested on charges of domestic violence battery and transported to the county jail.

Sunday, Feb. 22:

9:50 a.m. – Stolen DJ equipment. A Zumba teacher reported that his turntable, two speakers and a cord had been stolen from Adele Harrison Middle School. The man told police that he conducted a class the day before and left his DJ equipment off to the side of the stage. He returned that morning to collect his stuff and it was gone. The turntable was valued at $2,700, the speaker at $2,000 and a cable at $300.

9:44 p.m. – Dude, that’s not your car. A resident in the 1100 block of Manor Drive reported that there was an intoxicated man trying to get into his vehicle that was parked in the driveway. When police arrived, they found a sot that was almost too drunk to stand. The reporting party told the police he had never seen the man before. Since the 55-year-old Sonoma resident never did make access to the vehicle, he was charged with public intoxication and received the complimentary ride to county jail.

Monday, Feb. 23:

12:52 p.m. – Five-finger discount. Police were sent to the Safeway in the 400 block of West Napa Street for a report of a shoplifter. When they arrived, officers found the man sitting at the bus stop alongside the store along with a bottle of whiskey that was three-quarters empty. Police also found another bottle of whiskey, two bottles of expensive Scotch and four packages shaving razors. The man, who is what is described as a “frequent flier” for his numerous run-ins with law enforcement, claimed he didn’t know where the alcohol and razors came from. But a review of the store’s video showed the man with bulges in his coat as he exited. The bill for the purloined items came to $213.06, and since the 54-year-old Sonoman had 16 cents, he was charged with burglary shoplifting.

Tuesday, Feb. 24:

12:53 p.m. – 401K funds go missing. A resident of the 400 block of East Walnut Avenue reported fraudulent activity on her 401K account. On Feb. 26, somebody moved $224,719 from the account and on Feb. 3, somebody removed $70,000 and $130,000 and the money was deposited in Regents Bank in the Midwest.

Wednesday, Feb. 25:

7:02 p.m. – More alcohol-fueled fighting. In another alcohol-fueled domestic dispute, a 48-year-old Thornton, Pennsylvania, man was arrested for domestic violence assault after he and his girlfriend got into a dispute about Facebook. Police stopped the couple on Broadway and Watmaugh and found the woman was crying, claiming that back at the hotel the man had slapped her, dragged her by the hair and bit her. The woman didn’t want her beau arrested, but that didn’t happen. The beau was charged with domestic violence assault with injury, and booked into county jail.

To contact Sonoma Police – 996-3602

To contact the

Sonoma Valley Substation – 996-9495