In brief: Motel search puts six in jail

A search for one wanted man turned into six arrests Wednesday.

The original hunt was for Matthew E. Baumrucker, a 24-year-old man wanted for driving with a suspended license, domestic violence, malicious mischief and a probation violation, said Spokane County sheriff’s Sgt. Dave Reagan.

The Eastern Washington Joint Fugitive Task Force began its search at the Red Top Motel, and the arrests snowballed from there.

When it was all over, Baumrucker was booked into jail for his warrants, as were two men with Department of Corrections warrants: 18-year-old Cameron M. Franklin and 28-year-old Ryan C. Kuntz.

Two people – Joel A. Ballard, 22, and Kyle Steven Simpson, 21 – were arrested on drug charges, and one woman – 26-year-old Tiffany A. Stanowski – was taken to jail for obstruction of justice, Reagan said.

“Then the team broke for lunch,” Reagan said.

central Washington

Drugs seized, 12 arrested in sting

More than 60 law enforcement officers swooped through Grant, Kittitas and Yakima counties Tuesday to arrest a dozen suspects and seize at least $9.8 million worth of illegal drugs.

Police raided five homes near Mattawa, where they found several pounds of marijuana, 5 pounds of cocaine, 1 pound of meth and $135,000 in cash, according to a Grant County Sheriff’s Office news release.

Eight miles south, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency helicopter helped locate and move 2,500 marijuana plants – totaling $3.75 million – near Beverly.

Twelve people were arrested in the sting operation, according to the release.

The helicopter also helped Kittitas and Grant county sheriff’s deputies harvest 4,000 marijuana plants – totaling $6 million – from wooded areas near Kittitas, at a growing operation connected to the Mattawa arrests, the release states.

Yakima County officials raided a home in Sunnyside where they found a small marijuana-growing operation, also connected to the Mattawa search, according to the release.

But there, nobody was arrested because no one was home.

Federal, state, county and city law enforcement agencies cooperated for the sting.

Boise

Seven wolves in pack killed

Wildlife officials have killed seven wolves that were part of the Morris Flat Pack located west of Fairfield in central Idaho because they had been preying on livestock, officials said.

Officials say they are still trying to capture and kill another member of the pack that killed a calf on or before Aug. 15.

State and federal wolf managers in July began killing the wolves incrementally, hoping that the rest of the pack would move or that the attacks on livestock would end.

The first wolf was killed July 25, and two more pack members were removed Aug. 3 after livestock attacks continued, officials said.

Between Aug. 4 and 10 officials killed four more wolves from the pack on the Boise National Forest.

But officials with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game said that a wolf killed another calf in the area sometime around Aug. 15, and that the wolf will also be killed if it is trapped.

From staff

and wire reports