Earlier a patron of the gas station reporting party had purchased two money orders and put them in his back pocket and left the store. As he was driving away, he reached into his back pocket and the money orders were not there. He immediately went back to the store but could not find the money orders and nobody had turned them in to the employee. A male and a female were inside the store and he asked them if they found the money orders and they said they did not.

The officer reviewed the surveillance video at Texaco and saw the victim purchase the money orders and put them in his back pocket. The victim later reached into his pocket and took out a cell phone and the money orders fell on the floor. The victim did not notice that the money orders fell out of his pocket and he left the store. A female enters the store, sees the papers on the floor, and picks them up. The victim is seen coming back into the store and talking to the female, who shakes her head, pays for some merchandise, and then leaves the store.

The officer got a description of the female and the vehicle that she arrived and left in. After leaving the store, he saw a vehicle matching the description in the area and made a traffic stop.

He contacted the driver, 53-year-old Bill Rhyne of Lemoore, and Rhyne's daughter, 29-year-old Jessica Zavala of Lemoore. There was also a one-year-old child in the car. Both Rhyne and Zavala gave the officer permission to search the car. Officer Giles located a glass pipe in a bag on the floor of the vehicle. A purse on the passenger side of the car contained a digital scale and two plastic baggies, each containing a crystal-like substance suspected to be methamphetamine. The suspected methamphetamine weighed about 17 grams. Both Rhyne and Zavala denied knowledge of the drugs and paraphernalia in the car.

The money orders were not recovered. Zavala said she did not think she could cash them so she threw them away.

Both Zavala and Rhyne were booked into the Kings County Jail for possession of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance for sale, transportation of controlled substance, and child endangerment. Rhyne's bail was set at $110,000 and Zavala's bail was set at $105,000.

The child was turned over to the Kings County Child Protective Services.

Police nab car thief

An alert motorist helped the Lemoore Police Department apprehend a 17-year-old with local gang affiliation they suspected of stealing a vehicle earlier in the day. On Tuesday March 4, at about 8 p.m. Lemoore Officers were dispatched to the area of N. Lemoore Ave. and Hanford-Armona road regarding a stolen vehicle.

The motorists who was behind the suspect knew the car had been stolen earlier in the day from from a location on Highway 41. The vehicle was reported stolen to the Kings County Sheriff's Department. The reporting party soon lost sight of the vehicle and left the area.

Officer's arrived on scene and began checking the area. The responding officer re-contacted the reporting party in the Jack in Box parking lot when the stolen vehicle pulled into the Pioneer Square shopping center across the street.

The officer responded to the parking lot and watched as a subject parked the vehicle, exited the driver side, and entered the La Iguana Restaurant. The suspect attempted to leave the scene through the back door of the restaurant but was taken into custody without incident in the alley behind the shopping center.

Once taken into custody the subject was identified as a 17 year old male with local gang affiliation. He was also reported as a runaway with the Kings County Sheriff's Department. The suspect was transported and booked into the Kings County Juvenile Center for the unlawful taking of a vehicle as well as additional charges. The vehicle was returned to its owner.

On Wednesday March 5, at about 2:45 a.m., a traffic stop was conducted in the 700 block of Daphne Street for a mechanical violation. Upon contacting the driver the investigating officer believed that the driver was possibly operating the motor vehicle under the influence of an alcoholic beverage.

After conducting field sobriety tests, the driver was placed under arrest for DUI. The driver, Jeorge Gomez, 31, was also found to be on parole.

During a search of the vehicle after the arrest, officers found a loaded firearm under the driver’s seat in arm’s reach of Gomez. Gomez admitted to possessing the firearm for self defense from gang members.

Gomez was booked on numerous offenses into the Kings County Jail. His bail was listed at $80,000.00.