In brief: Reward at $4,250 for tips on possible dogfighting ring
The Humane Society of the United States and anonymous donors are offering a $4,250 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people involved in a suspected dogfighting ring in Spokane Valley.
Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service employees were called earlier this month to Trentwood Elementary School, 14701 E. Wellesley Ave., where a brown pit bull was found injured and tied to a garbage bin. The dog was covered in blood and eventually had to be euthanized because its injuries were so severe.
There was enough blood on the ground to indicate a second dog was involved and may have died from blood loss, officers said in a news release.
SCRAPS is asking anyone with information to call (509) 477-2532. First-degree animal cruelty and animal fighting both are felonies punishable by five years in prison and/or a fine of up to $10,000.
Pair found in ransacked home booked for burglary, damage
Spokane County deputies arrested a man and a woman who claimed to be staying at a furnished but unoccupied home in the Elk-Chattaroy area after they found the home ransacked.
The case started Monday night when the homeowner arrived at the home, in the 25200 block of North Sands Road, and found a Ford Explorer parked at the residence. Deputies responded, but the vehicle had left and they could not locate it.
Neighbors called Tuesday night and said the same Explorer had returned. Deputies again responded and ordered two suspects out of the residence. Arrested were 23-year-old Chaun Herkimer and 35-year-old Karen Lilyblad, sheriff’s Deputy Craig Chamberlin said in a news release.
Herkimer said he was homeless and that he and Lilyblad just stayed one night. But deputies found a broken window and several household items packed in duffle bags as if they were being prepared for removal.
The homeowner reported the entire house had been ransacked and estimated the damage at $5,000, Chamberlin said.
Both suspects were booked into jail on counts of second-degree burglary and first-degree malicious mischief.
Restrictions in recreation areas may affect Labor Day plans
Fire restrictions as well as still-burning wildfires will be a major factor for some campers and hunters heading for recreation areas in Idaho, Montana and Washington during Labor Day weekend.
Smoking, campfires and use of chain saws are restricted on most state and federal lands to prevent fires. Access roads and trails to some areas are closed because of existing fires, notably in Montana and central Idaho.
For example, the Selway River Trail, popular with hikers and hunters in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness, is closed this week as fire crews clear timber falling on the route in the Moose Creek District.
No major fires were listed Wednesday on the Colville or Idaho Panhandle National Forests, but fire restrictions are in place.
Despite cooler temperatures, fire danger continues to be rated extreme in much of the region, said Joani Bosworth, spokeswoman for the Umatilla National Forest.
Overdue hiker found injured; airlifted from national park
PORT ANGELES, Wash. – An Olympic National Park spokeswoman said a Mountlake Terrace, Wash., man reported overdue on a hike was found with a broken ankle and airlifted out of a canyon.
Spokeswoman Rainey McKenna said 32-year-old Tim Bailey was hoisted aboard a Coast Guard rescue helicopter Wednesday evening and then transported to a Port Angeles hospital for further examination.
McKenna said the hiker told rescuers he broke his left ankle Saturday when he tumbled about 150 feet down a slope.
Ground search teams heard sounds similar to gunshots on Wednesday and directed a search helicopter to check them out, McKenna said. The helicopter found Bailey at about 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.
He was due back Sunday from a three-day loop hike from Aurora Ridge Trailhead to the North Fork of the Sol Duc River. His wife reported him overdue Sunday evening.
Park officials said Bailey was well-prepared and did all the right things, including building a signal fire.