The Summit County Sheriff’s Office last week responded to leaf-peeping tourists who were clogging up traffic on a Colorado mountain pass in an effort to catch autumnal aspen views, among other incidents.

The following incidents occurred between Monday, Sept. 23, and Sunday, Sept. 29, according to the weekly log of notable calls published by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office.

On Monday, Sept. 23, a hunter reported that his horse had run off during the night in unincorporated Silverthorne. Early the next morning, a homeowner reported finding the horse on his property. He was able to secure the horse to a tree on his property and give her some water before leaving for work. Animal control contacted the owner, who had tried to get the horse but was unable to get the animal into his trailer. Animal control assisted in getting the horse loaded onto the trailer and offered education on local resources in the county on trailering horses.

On Wednesday, Sept. 25, a woman reported that a racoon attacked her dog, leaving the dog with scratches and puncture wounds. The woman and her husband were able to beat the racoon off the dog with a piece of wood and it ran off. Animal control advised the woman to take her dog to the vet for medical treatment and a rabies booster.

On Thursday, Sept. 26, a property management company in Keystone reported a fraudulent transaction made by a guest. They advised that the guest’s credit card company denied authorization for his stay and the man was trying to stay in the room for an additional night. A deputy along with a hotel manager attempted to contact the guest inside the room, but it was discovered that the guest never went inside the room and that no crime had been committed.

Also Thursday, a man in unincorporated Breckenridge reported that his neighbor’s unoccupied truck popped out of gear and rolled into his property, damaging several trees. The neighbor retrieved the truck but refused to pay for any damages. Deputies contacted the neighbor and gathered information to complete a private property accident report.

In another situation Thursday, a man reported to deputies that he found his neighbor’s vehicle in the parking lot with the door left open overnight and thought it might have been broken into. The man said there had been some recent thefts in the area, including tools from his truck bed. The neighbor was contacted and confirmed nothing had been stolen from their vehicle. It was determined that she might have forgotten to come back out to close the vehicle door after taking groceries inside. A report was taken for the man’s missing tools.

Also on Thursday, a woman in Dillon Valley applied for a job and accepted an offer, which turned out to be a scam. The purported employer sent her a check to deposit and asked her to send part of the payment back via Apple Pay, which she did prior to the check clearing. She was then told to purchase gift cards, at which point she became suspicious that the job was a scam and stopped communicating with the purported employer. 

On Friday, Sept. 27, deputies received a report of over 100 cars illegally parked on the roadway of Boreas Pass due to people wanting to see the golden aspen leaves. Deputies on scene issued many warnings, provided traffic control and had several vehicles move. A variable message board was placed in the area warning not to illegally park and listing potential parking citations.

On Saturday, Sept. 28, a camper in unincorporated Summit County reported over 30 cars and nearly 60 juveniles having a loud party near her campsite. Responding deputies observed loud music and a bonfire. One juvenile took responsibility for the illegal fire on open space land and was released to their parents. Another juvenile admitted to providing alcohol and was issued a summons and released to his parents. Portable breath tests were given to the other juveniles at the party to ensure they were sober and able to drive home safely. Trash was cleaned up from the site and the party was shut down completely.

Also Saturday, a woman reported that there was a naked man in the community hot tubs at her condominium complex who only put on his suit to walk back to his room. Deputies contacted the man at his unit and issued a warning, explaining it was not appropriate to be naked in a hot tub in the middle of a condo complex. The woman didn’t want to press charges and the man was apologetic saying it wouldn’t happen again.

On Sunday, Sept. 29, a woman reported that an unknown man drove up to her while she was at a trailhead and offered her a free T-shirt. As she got closer, she observed what the man was holding and thought it was a pair of underwear. The woman backed away and the man drove off. Deputies canvassed the area but did not locate the man. An investigation is ongoing.

Also Sunday, a woman in Keystone called in to report an illegal bonfire which she thought was about a quarter mile from her house. A deputy responded but was unable to find the fire and called the woman to report his findings. During the call, the woman told the deputy she could see him from her house and that he was standing in front of the fire. It turned out what she thought was a bonfire was a light pole located in front of a residence. No fire was found.

An incident also occurred at the Summit County jail last week where an individual in the custody of the jail called deputies via the intercom system to make them aware of unwanted physical contact. The two individuals were immediately separated, and deputies investigated. The allegations included several instances of sexual threats and a forcible kiss on the cheek. The suspect was criminally charged with two counts of harassment and subject to sanctions for jail rule violations.