Police Credit Neighbors For Drug Bust Watch Group Contacts Police After Owner Of House, A School Official, Takes No Action

A suspected North Side drug house is out of business, and police say concerned neighbors deserve much of the credit.

Three Spokane men and two women were arrested after officers raided a home at 1217 E. Glass at 4:45 p.m. Thursday.

Although only small amounts of cocaine and methamphetamine were seized along with three weapons, authorities said diligent neighbors played a key role in the bust.

“The information that we receive from neighbors can make the difference if there’s even an investigation or if we can obtain a search warrant,” said Lt. Chan Bailey, coordinator of the Spokane Regional Drug Task Force.

“Law enforcement may not even know there is a problem if the neighbors don’t contact them.”

Neighbors said they tried for several weeks to end the suspected drug trafficking out of the rented home.

Last week, resident Mike Wetzler said he saw a man outside the house pull a glass pipe out of a bag and smoke what appeared to be crack cocaine.

Wetzler said he often saw cash and drugs change hands in front of the house.

The neighborhood watch group approached the owner of the house, University High School Assistant Principal Rick Sicilia, several times about his troubling tenants, Wetzler said. But Sicilia, who lives about 20 miles north of Spokane, took no action against the renters.

A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, said he didn’t think Sicilia cared about the neighborhood because the tenants weren’t evicted.

“There are kids in this neighborhood,” the man said. “I just got the feeling he was brushing this off when we brought this up to him. I don’t how someone who is an educator can allow this to take place on his property.”

Sicilia said he cares about the neighborhood but felt his hands were tied because he had no proof that the tenants, who moved in about two months ago, were breaking the law.

“I was not indifferent about the matter, I was concerned,” Sicilia said.

He admits, however, that he didn’t inform police about the alleged drug dealing at his house.

Neighbors turned to police instead, helping officers gather enough information to obtain a search warrant.

“Neighborhood watch groups can play a very significant role in crime prevention,” Bailey said. “Sometimes one piece of information doesn’t help much, but a whole string of them, that can provide us with a lot of information to build a case.”

The task force did not release the names of the people arrested Thursday. They face charges ranging from cocaine possession to unlawful possession of a short shotgun.

, DataTimes