In brief: One dead after rafting accident

One man is dead and another missing after their raft capsized Saturday on the North Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River.

Around noon, the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a body in the river about 12 miles upstream from Enaville, Idaho. Deputies determined the body was that of a man in his late 40s.

Half an hour later a call came in from the Kingston Shell Station; a man reported that the small raft he had been floating in with two friends had capsized.

His two friends were missing.

Deputies established that the body found upriver was one of his companions.

The Sheriff’s Office launched a search and rescue operation including the Forest Service, a MedStar helicopter and the sheriff’s Dive Rescue Team.

The search went on for close to seven hours; the man was still missing Saturday night when the search was called off.

The missing man is described as 46 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall, 285 pounds, with long black hair; he was wearing a gray shirt and dark pants or shorts.

Anyone with information about the missing man should contact the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office in Wallace at (208) 556-1114.

Spokane

Incident in park draws rape charge

Some visitors at Riverfront Park on Saturday afternoon ended up as witnesses to an apparent sex crime.

Around 1:45 p.m., Riverfront Park security staff received a call from park visitors who said two 60-year-olds were having sex in some bushes, close to the playground near the old YMCA building.

“Park staff found a male performing oral sex on a female, and he immediately became combative,” said Sgt. Tim Moses with the Spokane Police Department. “They called us. His being combative was reason enough for us to detain him.”

The man turned out to be 53-year-old Terry Lee Thomas, of Spokane. The unidentified woman is 27; witnesses told the SPD that the two had met each other for the first time Saturday.

“Both were extremely intoxicated,” Moses said. “Lots of people saw them and heard them.”

Some saw the woman push Thomas away and try to get her clothes back on, Moses said, but Thomas continued to pull her clothes off.

There were many people at the park Saturday afternoon.

The woman was taken to the hospital, and Thomas was booked into jail.

Moses said Thomas will be charged with second-degree rape.

“Regardless of intoxication level, a no is a no,” Moses said.

Region

Holiday will affect offices, services

The following offices and services will be affected by the Memorial Day holiday Monday:

•City, county, state and federal offices will be closed.

•Post offices will be closed.

•State liquor stores will be closed in Idaho, but most will be open in Washington.

•Most banks will be closed.

•Public schools will be closed.

•Garbage pickup will be one day late for the week.

From staff reports