Crime Corner

COURTS: Serial shoplifter gets consecutive prison terms

A woman arrested as part of an electronics theft ring earlier this year was sentenced to a maximum of eight years in prison this week on two felony charges.

Rikki Lavender appeared in District Court Monday morning to be sentenced on charges related to narcotics and the theft of multiple electronic items, including TVs from Walmart stores both here in Pahrump and in Las Vegas.

Judge Robert Lane sentenced Lavender to consecutive terms of one to four years in prison for the offenses and ordered the defendant to pay restitution to both Walmart and the pawn shops she sold the stolen merchandise to, including EZ Pawn and Cash America in Las Vegas, as part of her sentence.

In all, Lavender reportedly owes nearly $5,000 in restitution, $4,000 of which must go to Walmart for the stolen items.

COPS: Police arrest woman after she reports fictitious screaming match

A woman claiming she was being harassed by the adverse party in a temporary protection order she filed with the local courts was arrested over the weekend for filing a false police report against the alleged suspect in the case.

On Friday around 7:20 p.m. a Nye County Sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to 330 S. Lola Lane for a report of a temporary protection order violation. When he arrived the officer met with Emily Engelken who said earlier in the day while she was at work, a red, four-door Dodge pickup truck stopped at the intersection near the business and a woman whom she had filed a TPO against allegedly stuck her head out of the vehicle and began yelling at her.

After taking a report from Engelken, the deputy made his way to the other woman’s home to make contact with her about the alleged TPO violation. At that time the woman’s husband told the officer his wife had been out of the state since Oct. 1.

A phone call to the alleged suspect confirmed this and the woman said she had receipts to prove she hadn’t been in the state in several days.

Around 2 a.m. the deputy made contact with Engelken again at her home and asked her to tell him what happened one more time. Engelken allegedly told the officer the same story as before, stating she was 100 percent sure it was the adverse party on the TPO that had yelled at her.

When Engelken was informed the other woman was currently out of the state, Engelken allegedly stated although she believed it was the other woman yelling at her, it would be impossible for it to be her since the woman wasn’t currently in Pahrump.

Engelken was then taken into custody on charges of filing a false police report and malicious prosecution before being transported to the Nye County Detention Center to be booked into custody.