Philip Bradly Wallis, 39, has been charged with driving under the influence, refusal to submit to a chemical test, making a false report, leaving the scene of an accident, weapons misconduct and drugs misconduct. All of the charges are misdemeanors.
Fairbanks police were called to the House of Kustom furniture store just after 3 a.m. Wednesday after receiving a notification from the store’s intruder alarm.
Witnesses told police that a 1992 Dodge Caravan was going too fast when it tried to turn from College Road onto Kathryn Avenue and “launched” off the grassy knoll and into the west side of the building, according to charging documents.
No one was in the building at the time, but damage to the business is estimated at $40,000.
“Basically, we’ve got the area blocked off right now and we’re just waiting for the adjuster to arrive,” House of Kustom owner Joe Plutt said Friday.
The wall took the brunt of the damage, but two windows also were broken, he said. Plutt said the store remains open and he hopes to have repairs completed in a couple of weeks.
After the crash, Wallis was located in the laundry room of the nearby Bunnell Street apartment complex. He reportedly smelled of alcohol and had poor balance and slurred speech.
He provided officers with a fake name and birth date, and also claimed to be doing laundry for residents of the complex who said they had never seen him before, court documents allege.
Police found two knives and a small bag of marijuana in Wallis’ pockets and an empty bottle of vodka on the floorboards of the minivan.
Tuesday’s crash was not Wallis’ first run-in with police. He has previous convictions for theft and drunken driving.
In 2001, he received a seven-year prison sentence for robbing two Fairbanks convenience stores.
His attorney at the time said that Wallis was going to use the time in jail to deal with a longtime drug and alcohol problem, while the prosecutor said called Wallis’ potential for rehabilitation “practically nonexistent.”
Contact staff writer Chris Freiberg at 459-7545.
I hope this guy gets off our streets for good after this! Won't be long before he's up for manslaughter if he's not taken care of now.