The Press-Dispatch
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B-2 Wednesday, May 5, 2021 The Press-Dispatch yeah, it's that fast! net edition Z M www.PressDispatch.net/Subscribe The Press-Dispatch. No matter where you live. ROBBERY Continued from page 1 PAVING Continued from page 1 Village Inn 242 S. State Road 57, Petersburg JOIN US FOR OUR MOTHER'S DAY BUFFET INCLUDES: Chicken, Roast Beef, Ham and all the delicious trimmings SUNDAY, MAY 9 • 11 A.M. - 2 P.M. $ 11 95 PLUS DRINKS & TAX Reservations a must, call 812-354-9259 No Checks GIFTS Mom for VISIT BATHBOMBSPETERSBURG.COM 714 E. MAIN STREET • 812-789-3054 G I F T S H O P BathBombsPetersburg Nice selection of coffee cups and apparel! NOW OPEN Wednesday-Saturday 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. We wear masks for our customers' safety! 20 OZ. INSULATED TUMBLERS Dozens of styles to choose from Variety of SURE TO PLEASE gift ideas! Save up to 50% on Bath Bombs for Mom Pregnant... or think you are? Call:1-877-257-1084 or Locally Call: 1-812-354-2814 • Free pregnancy testing • Free counseling and info. on pregnancy options. • Confi dential counseling for women & men who are suff ering from post-abortion syndrome. • Residential Care • Health and assistance referrals. • Training and education. • Assistance in getting baby and maternity clothes washpcc@sbcglobal.net www.washingtonpregnancycenter.com Reading program sign-up The Pike County Library Summer Reading program sign-up was Saturday. The program encourages reading by having people log the books they read and then they are entered in a drawing for prizes. Participants can use the phone app Beanstalk or a traditional reading log to track the books they read. About 70 people signed up for the program so far, which runs from May 1 to June 12. Above, Taylor Russell signs up while his mother Amber looks on. By Andy Heuring A Petersburg area man was arrested on a level 2 felony of dealing in methamphetamine after police found 78 grams of meth and more than $2,000 cash during a search of his residence. "This is one of the bigger ones we have seen in a while," said Pike County Prosecutor Darrin McDonald. Edward Lee Bowling II, 59, of 3577 W. CR 450 N., Pe- tersburg, was arrested last Wednesday evening when po- lice conducted a search of his residence at about 7:15 p.m. Bowling II was arrested on charges of dealing in metham- phetamine, at least 10 grams, a level 2 felony; possession of meth, at least 28 grams, a lev- el 3 felony; maintaining a com- mon nuisance, a level 6 felony; possession of marijuana, a lev- el 6 felony; and unlawful pos- session of a syringe. Two other people who were at his residence when police arrived were also arrested. Richard Edward Bowling, 60, of 217 S. Main St., Hunt- ingburg, and Colt Ray Walk- er, 31, of 607 S. Hill Dr., Pe- tersburg, were both charged with possession of meth, more than five grams and less than 10 grams, a level 5 felony; vis- iting a common nuisance; and possession or marijuana. Petersburg Officer Scott Arnold, along with Petersburg Police Chief Chuck Baumgart, Sgt. Chad McClellan, Pike County Chief Deputy Dallas Killian, and State Troopers Brayden Angermeier, Dustin Stein and Paul Stolz, executed a search warrant at Edward's residence on CR 450 N., Pe- tersburg. All three were de- tained in the camper while the search was conducted. During the search, police found 78 grams of a crys- tal-like substance that field tested positive for metham- phetamine. According to a probable cause affidavit, po- lice found eight bags contain- ing various amounts of meth. Five that had between 0.6 and 1.2 grams of meth, two other bags containing 7.2 and 14.3 grams, and one with 49 grams of meth. In a billfold, with Edward's identification in it, police found $1,950 and another $ 86 in cash in his pocket. They also found a plant sub- stance in a red cooler. All three were taken into custody and transported to the Pike County Jail. A level 2 felony is punish- able by 10 to 30 years in pris- on. Three arrested after 78 grams of meth found Killian's report states Lam- berson told police he has known Tharp most of his life and said they had used drugs in the past together. He add- ed it was his opinion Tharp thought Lamberson had drugs, so he robbed him. Lamberson said his pistol had been taken. Police also talked with Mi- chelle Blanchette. She told police, according to Killian's report, she was in bed when the three men came into their trailer unannounced. She said she knew Tharp, who she had earlier dated for three weeks, but didn't know the other two. She said the man wearing a mask "jumped on the bed and held her down" and "duct taped her hands to- gether." She also said both had large knives. Killian said Blanchette still had duct tape residue on her arms. Police also said Lamber- son had visible injuries on his head that were not consistent with being hit with bare fists. Lamberson told them Tharp was wearing brass knuckles on both hands. Killian's report states Lam- berson showed them a video of the men breaking into his trailer. Killian said the video showed a man in a black hood- ie, who Lamberson identified as Tharp, attempt to open the door and realized it was locked. "Tharp looks direct- ly at the camera." Then a man wearing a gray hoodie pried the door open with a large knife. Killian said Tharp went into the trailer first, followed by the man in a gray hood- ie and then a man in a black, sleeveless T-shirt went in last. Killian said after interview- ing Lamberson and Blanch- ette, they began trying to lo- cate Tharp and the other two men. He talked on the phone with detectives from the Washington Police De- partment and Daviess Coun- ty Sheriff Dept. Killian said he then noticed, in notes the police had taken, that one of the two men was wearing a clown mask and was referred to as "Jasper." Killian said at 11:30 a.m., he was notified by Daviess Coun- ty that one of their deputies was enroute to Glendale Fish and Wildlife area, where a third-party called reported a woman told her another wom- an said she was with two men who had robbed someone and they were threating to shoot her. Killian said he started on his way to Glendale and while he was driving to Daviess County, he was notified Da- viess County had two men in custody who had large knives and a pistol matching the one Lamberson reported to be sto- len. Killian said they told him the men were David Blanch- ette and Jasper Stocker. At the same time, Pike County Sheriff Kent John- son and Daviess County dep- uties were checking on a re- port of a broken down vehicle along the road matching the description of Tharp's vehi- cle. When Sheriff Johnson ar- rived, Tharp had been taken into custody. Killian's report stated Tharp was not questioned be- cause of his level of intoxica- tion and his "agitated state." However, Sheriff Johnson said Tharp asked police if they "had located the gun." Killian said Daviess Coun- ty police located a pistol and a machete on David Blanchette, along with "multiple items of drug paraphernalia on both males (Blanchette and Stock- er)." Along with two turtles in a backpack. All three were questioned by police. The female who re- quested police be called was Stephanie Bullington. She said she had picked up Blanch- ette in Mt. Carmel and drove him to Princeton. Then Tharp contacted Blanchette and said he would pick them up at the Marathon station. She said she and Blanchette found Stocker and went to the Mar- athon station, where Tharp picked them up. Bullington said she be- lieved Blanchette knew from that point they were going to commit a robbery. She said Tharp told David they were going to pretend they were buying (drugs) and then rob them. Bullington said Tharp told them "that this lady had put a gun in his mouth and robbed him." She said she thought Tharp was going there to get revenge on her. She also told police Tharp told Blanchette, "He was going to do some sinis- ter stuff" and that he hoped the man there would go along with it. She said when they got to Lamberson's trailer, they told her to lay down in the back- seat. She also told police a short time after arriving at the trail- er, a man in white shorts, with blood on his head, came run- ning towards the car, telling her, "If you don't want to get shot, you need to leave." Tharp, Blanchette and Stocker then got back in the car and told her to put her hands over her ears. She told police she could hear them talk about putting duct tape on a woman's hands. She later then called a friend and told them what had hap- pened, and that person called police. Police said she told them the men had taken drugs and a gun from the trailer, and that Stocker handed the gun to Blanchette. Bullington was released. Blanchette told police he and Bullington were hang- ing out in Princeton when he got a call from Tharp, who he thought was "tripping out." According to Killian's re- port, Blanchette said Tharp picked them up and while driv- ing, Tharp told them a story about being robbed and hav- ing a gun stuck in his mouth by a girl. Blanchette said he told Tharp he would pay if Tharp would just take him home. But Tharp told Blanchette he was coming with them and he couldn't get out of the car. Blanchette told police he carries a machete for protec- tion "due to the business he is in." He said he didn't know they were going to commit a robbery. Killian's report also states Blanchette told police the door to Lamberson's trailer "just opened." But when po- lice told him they had a vid- eo of it, he admitted he used a knife to pop the lock open. He said when they went in- to the trailer, Tharp "immedi- ately started wailing on" Lam- berson. Blanchette said he put him- self between the female (Mi- chelle Blanchette) and Tharp so she wouldn't get hurt and that he kept Tharp from hit- ting her. Blanchette described that he was in a "mounted po- sition" on Michelle on the bed being "kind and gentle, and talking to her." But Tharp was yelling for him to tie her up, so he got duct tape from Stocker and taped her hands together to appease Tharp. Blanchette also told police he saw drugs and the gun be- ing passed back and forth, and he told them it was his "for the protection of everyone." But added he got the pistol from Tharp. When police interviewed Stocker, he said he was picked up in Princeton by Tharp, who told them about being robbed by a woman who put a gun in his face and "his best friend just sat there and let it hap- pen." Stocker, according to Kil- lian's report, said "he want- ed to go up in there and take some drugs." He also told police Tharp said he, "wanted to get sa- distic and smack the female around." Stocker said when they went in the house, Tharp saw the woman asleep and went and the other direction, and started hitting Lamberson. He said he found the gun and drugs and took them. He add- ed Blanchette was " gentle- man-like" because he took the extra time to make sure the girl was okay before they left. He said the big knife was "only for show and intimida- tion, not to hurt anyone." Killian's report also states Stocker said he forgot to put his mask on and he knew he was on camera, so he decid- ed to "just let these guys have their fun." Stocker also said after about five minutes in the car with Tharp, he figured out they were going to get some dope by robbing the people who had robbed Tharp. He also said after they left Lamberson's, he and Blanch- ette decided they were going to rob Tharp. Stocker was also taken in- to custody. A level 2 felony in Indiana is punishable by 10 to 30 years. A level 3 felony is punishable by three to 16 years in prison. ects since 2016. Communi- ties submitted applications for funding during a highly com- petitive call for projects held in January. Applications were evaluated based on need and current conditions, and im- pacts to safety and econom- ic development. Funding for Community Crossings comes from the state's local road and bridge matching grant fund. "Community Crossings is a major asset to Indiana cit- ies, towns and counties as they build and modernize lo- cal roads and bridges," IN- DOT Commissioner Joe Mc- Guinness said. "The state's funding partnership allows local partners to tackle larg- er scale projects more quickly than would otherwise be pos- sible, maximize their resourc- es to complete more projects and achieve the best possible value for Hoosiers." To qualify for funding, lo- cal governments must provide local matching funds, 50 per- cent for larger communities or 25 percent for smaller commu- nities, from a funding source approved for road and bridge construction. They must also submit an INDOT-approved asset management plan for maintaining existing roads and bridges. State law re- quires annually that 50 per- cent of the available matching funds be awarded to commu- nities within counties with a population of 50,000 or fewer. The roads Winslow will pave with the funding are: • Walnut St., from North to Lucas; • Lucas St., from Walnut to Bluff; and • Center St., from Main St. to West. Pike County road projects awarded are: • Illinois St., from High- way 61 to the Petersburg City limits; • Lake Minnis Dr., from Highway 57 to CR 550 N.; • Rolling Acres Dr., from Highway 57 to Rolling Acres Ct.; • Rolling Acres Ct., from Rolling Acres Dr. to dead end; • CR 550 N., from Highway 57 to CR 200 E.; • E. Division Rd., from Highway 257 to Dubois Coun- ty line. Petersburg road projects awarded: • Illinois St., from Main St. to city limits; • 18th St., from Main St. to Highway 56; • Walnut St., from 12th St. to dead end; • Sixth St., from Main St. to Cherry St.; • Cherry St., from Sixth to Seventh Sts; • Eighth St., from Main St. to dead end; • Spruce St., from Fifth to Seventh St.: • Fourth St., from Main St. to Locust St.