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ELKINS – Additional charges have been filed against an Elkins man who was arrested late last week for allegedly fleeing from police.
In addition to one felony count of fleeing from an officer, Sean Michael Moser, 26, has been additionally charged with two felony counts of receiving or transferring stolen goods, one misdemeanor count of prohibited person in possession of firearm, one misdemeanor count of domestic battery and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.
He is currently being held at Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $50,000 cash-only bond for all charges, set by Randolph County Magistrate Ben Shepler.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Randolph County Magistrate Court regarding the receiving and transferring stolen goods charge, at approximately 3:36 p.m. on May 24, Deputy D.D. Pennington, of the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, was dispatched to a complaint regarding the theft of an ATV next to the Big Lots store in Elkins.
The complainant told Pennington he runs the construction company in charge of remodeling the vacant building next to Big Lots, the complaint states. He stated he lives in Pennsylvania and that while he was here working, he kept his “limited edition 2007 Yamaha Raptor in the back of the building.”
He supplied Pennington with a description of the ATV as “black, orange, and white in color, that it has black webbing on the foot pegs, and that it has a black push bar on the front of the ATV.” He added the ATV has “yoshimara exhaust and a power commander tuner under the seat.”
The man said the ATV was there when he left the building at 6:30 p.m. on May 23, but when he returned at 3:30 p.m. on May 24, it was missing. Pennington spoke to another employee who said before he left at 6:30 p.m. on May 23, he “checked every door in the building to make sure they were locked and secure.” Both men said they didn’t know how the suspect gained entry to the building, the complaint states.
On Oct. 24, Pennington received information that Moser was “in possession of the reported stolen Yamaha Raptor on a property near Harman, W.V., off of Rich Mtn. (sic) Rd. along with other possible stolen ATV’s.” According to the complaint, this is the same property where Moser’s camper was located.
On Oct. 28, Pennington applied for a search warrant for the property, traveled there and recovered two ATV’s, one of which is a Yamaha Raptor that is “believed to be the original frame of the ATV with the VIN number removed,” the complaint stated. The Raptor had “the original color plastic body of orange and black removed and replaced with white and blue.”
The alleged victim advised Pennington of several aftermarket items he added to the ATV, including “DG brand nurf bars, a black DG push bar, with black rims, a FMF exhaust and an aftermarket power booster located under the seat.” These items were located on the ATV that had been located, according to the complaint. Pennington also recovered a Honda Rancher with a VIN number listed as stolen out of Barbour County.
Both ATV’s were valued at over $1,000, according to the complaint.
According to a separate criminal complaint filed in Randolph County Magistrate Court, at approximately 6:48 a.m. on Nov. 26, Cpl. D.R. Wolford Jr., of the West Virginia State Police, was notified Moser was at a residence located on Goff Street near Elkins.
Wolford was told Moser had an outstanding arrest warrant for fleeing from an officer with reckless indifference, the complaint states. Upon arrival, Wolford spoke with two individuals who said Moser arrived at their residence “causing a disturbance over a female.”
One of the men reportedly told police while Moser was on his front porch he could “observe (Moser) in possession of a handgun” and “asked (Moser) to unload the firearm prior to entering the residence in which (Moser) complied.”
At approximately 11:11 a.m. on the same date, Wolford was notified that Moser had returned to the residence and was “causing a domestic disturbance” with the same female, court documents state. Upon arrival, Wolford took Moser into custody for the outstanding arrest warrant.
While conducting a “search incident arrest,” Wolford located a “hypodermic needle, a clear plastic baggy containing a white powder/crystal substance believed to be methamphetamine and a brass in color 9mm Luger full metal jacket round in the front right pocket of (Moser’s) pants.” An additional full metal jacket round was located inside the residence where the domestic disturbance had taken place, the complaint states.
Also on the same date, police observed “swelling and redness around the right eye of the (alleged female) victim,” according to court documents. The woman said she was “in the shower” with one of the men at the residence when she “noticed someone opening the shower curtain.” She said Moser “grabbed her by the hair and began swinging towards (the man in the shower with her).”
She reportedly told police an altercation ensued between the man and Moser while she was “yelling for the two to stop.” She said Moser followed her into the bedroom and “laid down on her chest and began crying.”
The alleged female victim said she and Moser had been involved in an intimate relationship in the past, according to the complaint.
Wolford conducted a field test on the white substance he located on Moser and it tested positive for methamphetamine, the complaint states.