Man who served 6 months for August shooting under investigation for drugs, weapons charges

A 21-year-old Deer Park man who served six months in prison for shooting a man last August was rearrested in late April on suspicion of possessing drugs and intending to sell them.

During that investigation, Spokane County Sheriff’s detectives also uncovered recent photos of Mason J. Bolton posing with firearms, which are illegal to possess as a convicted felon, according to court documents.

Bolton was facing more than 11 years in prison for the shooting in Harmon Park before pleading to a lesser charge in November. Police were not able to locate a gun or conduct follow-up interviews with the victim.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge John Cooney said Bolton received an extraordinarily short sentence.

“It pushed me to want to do better,” Bolton said about his plea agreement in court in November.

His attorney said he planned to work at Subway upon his release and apply for mechanic training.

But on April 23, a Spokane County Sheriff’s deputy saw Bolton driving in Deer Park and knew his license was suspended, according to court documents.

A Department of Corrections officer asked the deputy to search the vehicle, and he found a digital scale and a bag of white powder under a floor board, according to court documents. Bolton admitted there was an ounce of cocaine in the car but denied it was his.

The deputy also found nearly $7,000 in cash in the car’s center console, according to court documents.

During a search of Bolton’s phone, a detective found photos of Bolton with several firearms, including an AK-47-style rifle, between March and April, according to court documents. Videos on the phone appeared to show someone holding a bag of cocaine and someone firing one of the guns from the photos.

A corrections officer determined the background of some of the photos to be inside of Bolton’s home, according to court documents. A handgun magazine and bullets were found inside during a law enforcement search on April 30.

Bolton was arrested again on May 1 and released from the Spokane County Jail on Wednesday, according to jail records. He is scheduled to be arraigned on the new charges later this month.