|
Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Top Stories
Monday, August 5, 2002
Police look to make arrest in teen's shooting
By JENNIFER GALVAN
Staff Writer
PECOS, Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 -- A 16-year old Pecos boy is in an Odessa hospital
after he was shot in the head early Sunday morning on the 1200 block
of South Cherry St.
According to Lt. Kelly Davis, the call came in at 2:50 a.m. and when officer
arrived a fight was in already in progress.
However, Davis said that the shooting took place prior to their arrival.
It is believed that the victim, who was later identified as Ysidro Acosta,
was shot with a small caliber due to the wounds he sustained, Davis said.
Davis said they believe the incident to be gang related but do not believe
that the victim is member of a gang.
"We know that at least three gang members are involved," Davis said.
According to Davis, though no one has been charged with the shooting,
four people were arrested.
The police report stated that Fabien Orona, 17, Peter Barreno, 18, Gilbert
Placencia, 21 and James Burciaga, also 21 were all arrested following the
incident.
Orona and Placencia were all arrested for disorderly conduct. Barreno
was also arrest for disorderly conduct and for public intoxication. The three
boys are all members of the BPG gang, Davis said.
Davis added that though Burciaga is not believed to be a member of the
gang, he was also arrested for disorderly conduct and evading arrest. Burciaga
is believed to have been on the victim's side.
"Its not one of those gang on gang incidents," Davis said.
It is not known how the incident started till statements are taken from
witnesses and the victim.
"We have to talk to witnesses and the victim when he is able to talk,"
Davis said.
Though the gun has not been recovered, Davis said that they did recover
other weapons.
"We recovered a lot of weapons but no gun," Davis said.
Some of the weapons recovered were bats, clubs and knifes.
Acosta was taken first to Reeves County Hospital and then transported
to Odessa.
"He is still in ICU but doing better," Maricela Acosta sister of the victim
said.
The Pecos Police Department is still investigating the incident and asks
if any one has any information on the where abouts of the gun to call the
police department.
"We would like for some one with information to call us," Davis said.
"If any one has gang information they can call (investigator) Mundy Granado.
Or they can call Crime Stoppers if they wish to remain anonymous."
Examiner rules Stockton boy's death accidental
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 -- The death of a four-year old Fort Stockton
boy, who was found locked in the rear of a car Friday after being reported
missing last Monday, has been ruled "accidental," by a medical
examiner in San Antonio.
Schyler Lee Fain was reported missing Monday, July 29, by his mother.
The little boy was last seen at about 11 a.m. that morning in the yard of
his great-grandparents home, which is located in a remote section on the
north side of Fort Stockton.
After parents and family members searched for the 4-year old boy for two
hours, the young boy was then listed as missing.
Four days later, Fain was found in the trunk of a vehicle located outside
his great-grandparent's home. The discovery of the boy's body was made about
10 a.m., Friday.
"He apparently locked himself inside the hatchback car," said Pecos County
Sheriff Cliff Harris this morning.
"We're officially going to rule it an accidental death," said Harris.
"Preliminary autopsy results show that he died of heatstroke," he said.
The preliminary results came from the Bexar County Medical Examiner's
office where the body had been sent on Friday after being found. Fain probably
only lived about 30 minutes in the trunk of the 1982 Volkswagen two-door
hatchback, physicians said.
Harris said the body of the boy was found by an REO Rescue Dog (cadaver
searching dog), which was brought in from Dallas on Thursday.
Last Wednesday, Harris said that Fain had a habit of wandering off in
the family's yard, since it was on the outskirts of Fort Stockton and there
was plenty of room. But the body eventually was located in a hidden area
of a vehicle which had been checked when the search first began.
"They had searched that particular vehicle and other places in that area,"
said Harris. "There was a small spare tire compartment that was not checked,
nobody noticed that compartment, which is where the little boy was."
"Everybody had checked that vehicle, they just didn't notice that compartment,"
said Harris, who added that it was the dog that had alerted to that particular
car and area.
Funeral arrangements have been scheduled for 2 p.m., Friday, at St. Agnes
with arrangements being made by Memorial Funeral Home of Fort Stockton.
The search for the little boy had been cut back on Wednesday, but volunteers
continued to comb the area before the rescue dogs arrived.
Sheriff's deputies suspected an abduction at that time, and Harris said
authorities followed a lead from an employee with FedEx who reported seeing
Fain at about 11:39 a.m., Monday.
"They searched that area and it was an area that she had pointed out a
little ways further than where the initial search began," said Harris. "They
searched a little lager area and all the way to Farm Road 1053."
Kids, pilots learn lessons at fly-in breakfast
By ROSIE FLORES
and
JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 -- Pecos children got to learn a little bit about
airplanes, and some pilots got to learn a little bit more about operating
the ones they own under emergency conditions on Sunday, during the
annual fly-in breakfast at the Pecos Municipal Airport.
Between 25 and 30 planes from around the area participated in this year's
event, said Airport Manager Isabel Blanchard, while about 68 boys and girls
experienced the thrill of flying Sunday morning, when children ages 8-17
were invited to participate in the Young Eagles Program.
"All in all we had about 88 people that were taken up on an airplane,"
said airport manager Isabelle Blanchard.
"Everybody had a great time, we had a really good turn out," said Blanchard.
"We had pilots from all over West Texas."
Pilots came in from as far away as Deming, N.M. and El Paso, while a lot
flew in from the Midland/Odessa area, Marfa, Alpine, Monahans, Wink and Kermit.
Most of the pilots flew in twin seat or larger propeller aircraft, though
there were also some experimental planes that made the trip down to Pecos,
while the U.S. Customs Service also spent some time at the airport, flying
in and out in their small multi-passenger jet.
Boys and girls who signed up were given a chance to take a flight with
one of the pilots, while some other youths and adults traveled by train _
the miniature train operated by the Pecos Downtown Lions Club, which put
on the breakfast and also ran trips up and down the hangar area, where most
of the planes were parked.
"We served more than 300 people this morning," said Lions Club member
Nancy Ontiveros. "We started serving the community people about 7:15 a.m.,
and the planes started showing up around 7 o'clock this morning."
The breakfast last from 7 to 11 a.m., and several pilots took part in
a cantaloupe bombing competition, where a small swimming pool was set up
between runways for the pilots to attempt to drop their cantaloupes into.
The competition went on while the Young Eagles Program rides were being conducted.
"The last kid to ride was about 2 p.m.," said Blanchard. "It was getting
hot and bumpy, but the children didn't seem to mind."
Blanchard said that they did have to turn some youngsters away, that weren't
quite the right age. "But it's okay because they can do it next year, or
next time we have this," she said.
Between the time the breakfasts were served and the boys and girls were
taken on their trips, many of the pilots attended a one-hour presentation
by Mike Jordan and John Boatright with the Federal Aviation Administration's
Lubbock Flight Standards Office.
"The topic today was desert survival and what to do in the event of a
crash landing out here," said Jordan, who also conducted safety inspections
with Boatright of the planes at the airport during Sunday's event.
"We go around the district doing these, but the district is pretty big.
It's about 80,000 square miles," he added.
The presentation was for both pilots, which is Boatright's main field,
and airplane mechanics, which is what Jordan deals with.
"They can earn their FAA wings for the Pilot Proficiency Program," said
Boatright, a former Monahans resident. He added that they do about three
presentations per month, while volunteer safety counselors, such as Blanchard,
also are authorized to do presentations.
The safety seminar went real well, according to Blanchard. "The two representatives
that came in to give the safety seminar were very pleased with the turnout,"
said Blanchard.
The pilots were evaluated without any fear of punitive damages, she said.
Blanchard said that they would try to bring this program and the fly-in
again next year. She added that this was also done during a fly-in breakfast
five years ago and that about 78 children had participated at that time.
Blanchard said that maybe through this program a spark would ignite one
youngster. She said that the possibilities are endless and only limited by
the individual. "When you fly, you get a different perspective," she said.
Rec department begins sign-ups for flag football
PECOS, Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 -- The Reeves County Community Sports and
Recreation Department will be signing up boys and girls for its youth flag
football program between now and Aug. 30.
The program is for children ages 5 through 7 and has an enrollment fee
of $10 per child. A birth certificate must be provided and both parents must
sign the registration form for the child to participate.
Sign-ups are at the recreation office in the old Pecos High School gym.
For further information, call the recreation department at 447-9776.
Weather
PECOS, Monday, Aug. 5, 2002 -- High Sunday 97. Low this morning 72. Forecast
for tonight; Partly cloudy. Lows 70 to 75. Southeast winds 5 to 15
mph. Tuesday; Partly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms. Highs in the
upper 90s. Southeast winds 10 to 20 mph. night; Partly cloudy with
isolated thunderstorms. Lows 70 to 75. Wednesday; Partly cloudy. Highs
95 to 100. Thursday; Partly cloudy. Lows near 70. Highs 95 to 100.
Obituaries
Teresa Gonzales, Wilma Reynolds and Paul Weisent
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail newsdesk@nwol.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2002 by Pecos Enterprise
|
