Larry Kline
Havre Daily News
lkline@havredailynews.com
Someone took a drive through the bays at the Blue Bear Car Wash early Sunday. It took four garage doors, two parked trucks and about $16,700 in damage to stop the perpetrator's vehicle, a large, older-model SUV.
Police interviewed a suspect on Sunday but no arrest has been made. Havre Assistant Police Chief George Tate said today the case will be referred to the Hill County Attorney's Office. The amount of damage will likely result in a felony charge, he added.
"We should have it wrapped up in the next couple of days," Tate said.
Erik Meis, who owns Blue Bear and EMT car washes, said he was awakened about 2:50 a.m. Sunday by a call from the Havre Police Department, asking him to secure the Blue Bear building. Meis lives in an apartment at Blue Bear, just north of the wash bays. What he saw when he came downstairs was a bit of a shock, he said.
"I walk outside, and here are these doors, blown out," Meis said. He said he hadn't heard any noise before the police called him. A third party reported the incident at 2:41 a.m.
Meis said the suspect drove west through the southernmost wash bay, easily tearing through two aluminum garage doors. The suspect then came around and drove into the northernmost bay, ripping through the door and slamming into the rear of Meis' girlfriend's pickup truck. The pickup truck was pushed forward into a one-ton delivery truck owned by Meis. The vehicles were pushed foward into a fourth door.
Tate said the suspect backed up and rammed into the vehicles again at least once.
Meis said it will cost at least $3,000 to replace each of the four doors and that about $4,700 in damage was done to the vehicles. Meis said he and his girlfriend have insurance on their vehicles, and he has insurance for the building.
He said police officers have told him the driver was drunk. He doesn't think alcohol is the only thing behind the incident.
"I really don't buy that there's no motive," Meis said, although he doesn't know what the motive could be.
Meis said he will have the doors removed from the wash bays today. Customers will still be able to use the facility, he said.
"It's business as usual, but you won't be able to get in out of the wind," he said.
