A Morongo Valley woman who said she’d rather go to jail than rat out her boyfriend was arrested and jailed Friday. According to a Sheriff’s report, Morongo Basin deputies were contacted just before noon on Friday by Riverside County deputies for assistance in locating and interviewing the driver of a silver Volkswagen Jetta, who was believed to have stolen 20 CDs from Costco in Palm Desert. Deputies went to the home of the car’s registered owner in the 49800 block of 29 Palms Highway where they were met by Charissa Zappia, 30. She told deputies that her boyfriend, Garrett Basich, 29, of Desert Hot Springs was driving her car that day. The deputy called Basich, but he refused to go to Zappia’s home. The deputy warned Zappia that Basich was wanted on a felony warrant, and if she did not cooperate with deputies, she would be arrested as an accessory after the fact. Zappia told deputies that she would rather go to jail than tell deputies her boyfriend’s address. So deputies arrested Charissa Zappia for investigation of being an accessory and on a $100,000 misdemeanor warrant, took her to Hi-Desert Medical Center to be checked out before booking her into the Morongo Basin Jail, with her bail set at $25,000. When deputies arrived at the Sheriff’s station with Zappia, they found Basich waiting for them. Garrett Basich was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant, booked into the Morongo Basin jail, with his bail set at $50,000.
