Polk County News
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • December 13, 2017 3A
Akha farm owners Holiday planning should include fire safety
arrested last week
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
DALLAS — The owners of
the Akha Farm in Falls City,
Matthew McDaniel and
Michu Uaiyue, were arrested
last week on assault, mis-
treatment, and sexual abuse
charges involving a teen girl.
M c -
Daniel has
b e e n
charged in
two cases.
One with
charges of
first-degree
criminal
m i s t re a t -
McDaniel
ment and
fourth-de-
gree as-
sault stem-
ming from
an incident
that oc-
curred in
December
2016, dur-
Uaiyue
ing which
he is accused of causing in-
jury to “a dependent per-
son,” according to court
documents.
The girl was 15 at the time
and said McDaniel “had
thrown her against a car …
causing extreme pain in her
back,” according to the
probable cause affidavit filed
with the case.
McDaniel is charged with
first-degree sexual abuse in-
volving the same girl in a dif-
ferent case. The charges are
the result of an account the
girl gave to police earlier this
month during a child abuse
assessment at Liberty
House.
Uaiyue is charged with
two counts of first-degree
criminal mistreatment and
two counts of second-degree
assault. The charges also in-
volved the same juvenile fe-
male. Court documents say
the girl disclosed during the
Liberty House assessment
that Uaiyue had been abus-
ing her since January of
2015. The incidents included
burning her with melted
plastic, cutting her with a
knife and leaving her tied up
for days, according to a
probable cause affidavit filed
with the case.
The girl said during the
assessment that Uaiyue
forced her recant her de-
scription of McDaniel push-
ing her into a car in Decem-
ber 2016, resulting in the
case being dismissed last
year. She said in the Liberty
House assessment that her
initial statement was true,
and she only recanted be-
cause Uaiyue threatened to
cut off her hair one inch at a
time until she finished writ-
ing a letter taking back her
account.
Uaiyue and McDaniel
were arrested on Dec. 7.
McDaniel was released
from Polk County Jail on
Dec. 8 with an order not to
contact the victim. Uaiyue
remains in custody on
$180,000 and was sched-
uled to be in court on Tues-
day. McDaniel’s next ap-
pearance is Thursday.
Itemizer-Observer staff report
POLK COUNTY — State
fire marshal Jim Walker
urges citizens to remember
fire prevention and safety
when decorating and enter-
taining during the holidays.
Oregon fire agencies re-
ported 3,510 residential
fires during the holiday pe-
riod (Nov. 22 through Jan.
15) between 2012 and 2016.
These fires resulted in 14
deaths, 194 injuries and
more than $61.2 million in
property loss.
Tips for decorating a
Christmas tree include:
• Choose a fresh, healthy
tree with a deep-green color
and flexible needles.
• Cut off the bottom two
inches of the trunk to create
a fresh, raw cut for the tree
to soak up water.
• Water daily.
• Place the tree at least
three feet away from any
heat source. Unplug tree
lights before leaving home
or going to bed.
• Other holiday safety
tips include inspecting holi-
day lights for frayed wires,
bare spots or broken or
cracked sockets; never
burning wrapping paper in
a fireplace or wood stove,
and never leave burning
candles unattended.
For a full list of safety
tips, visit www.oregon.-
gov/OSP/SFM/pages/com_
ed_section.aspx.
Dallas library to host adult coloring day
Itemizer-Observer staff report
DALLAS — Dallas Public
Library, 950 Main St., Dal-
las, will hold coloring for
adults Friday from 1 to 4
p.m.
There is no cost to at-
tend. Participants may
come for all three hours or
drop in any time during the
afternoon.
Coloring books, pencils
and pens will be provided
by the library.
For more information:
503-623-2633.
Toys for Tots drive set for Wednesday
Itemizer-Observer staff report
MONMOUTH/INDE-
PENDENCE — The Mon-
mouth-Independence
Chamber Forum will aid a
Toys for Tots drive Wednes-
day (today) from noon to 1
p.m. at Independence City
Hall, 555 S. Main St., Inde-
pendence. Burgerville will
donate lunch.
Food and toy donations
will be greatly appreciated.
To register or for more in-
f o r m a t i o n : w w w. m i c c -
or.org.
Corrections posts ‘most wanted’
Itemizer-Observer staff report
DALLAS —
Polk
County Community Cor-
rections lists these individ-
uals as “most wanted” for
December. Citizens with
information on the where-
abouts of any of them can
call Community Correc-
tions at 503-623-5226.
• Benjamin Lee Sarvela,
born Sept. 25, 1997, 6-4,
160 pounds, brown hair,
green eyes. Charge: Unau-
thorized use of a motor
vehicle and identity theft.
• Cary Edson Rotan,
born June 5, 1961, 6-3,
200 pounds, brown hair,
brown eyes. Charge: Pos-
session of methampheta-
mine, first-degree theft
and manufacturing of
methamphetamine.
• Kehkashan Suduf Ijaz,
born Sept. 8, 1993, 5-4,
125 pounds, brown hair,
brown eyes. Charge: Pos-
session of methampheta-
mine.
The Polk County Itemizer-Observer
YOUR community news source.
Sarvela
Rotan
Come and see me
for your hearing needs.
Mark Sturtevant
Serving the
community
since 1992.
503-623-0290 • 312 Main Street, Dallas
Please join us for
Christmas Eve
Candlelight
Service
at 6pm
The Christmas Eve
Candlelight Service will
start at 7:00 pm
The New Year's Eve Party
will be at 7:00 pm.
Bring your favorite games
and snacks.
Dallas First Christian Church
1079 SE Jefferson St.,
Dallas • 503-623-2569
Candlelight Service
Christmas Eve
5:30 - 6:30
“Hope was born this night”
45 min of
Christmas
Carols
Calvary Chapel
628 SE Jefferson St. • Dallas
For more information 503-831-1074
Special
Presentation of
Christmas Across
America
Join us for Christmas Eve Day
Sunday Service
December 24th
10:30 am
119 E Main St, Suite 200, Monmouth
For more info call Tami 541-990-5551
for Kids age 5+
Nursery and toddler
care available for
children under age 5.
First Baptist Church of Independence
www.facebook.com/experiencetheedge/
Family Worship & Children’s Sunday School 11 AM
1505 Monmouth St., Independence
503-838-1001
(Across from Central High School)
Evangelical Bible Church
presents
St.Thomas
Episcopal Church
“The Hope of the Ages”
10 am December 24
Last Sunday in Advent...Eucharist
Performed by the Choir
7 pm Christmas Eve
Congregation singing and
small group performances
also included in the program.
Choral Eucharist
December 24th at 4:00 pm
Evangelical Bible Church
1175 SE Howe St, Dallas
503-623-2331
1486 SW Levens, Dallas
503-623-8522 • www.stthomasdallas.org