Northwest Briefly: Boeing to test military airplane over Hood Canal

Published 9:27 pm Sunday, September 27, 2009

SEATTLE — Boeing today will begin flight tests for a military airplane over Hood Canal.

The plane, a 737 outfitted with a self-protection system, will release flares and be closely followed by a chase aircraft.

The seven flights between today and Oct. 15 will test the self-protection system aboard a Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft, with a large rectangular antenna mounted on the upper fuselage and Royal Australian Air Force markings. The chase plane is a T-33 jet that will videotape the tests for later analysis.

Anyone observing the plane may see white light and some smoke, a normal part of the activity.

Seattle real estate king bankrupt; investors hurt

Banks have forced a Seattle real-estate magnate into bankruptcy, leaving about 200 local investors at risk of losing more than $100 million.

Michael R. Mastro, a prominent developer over the past 40 years, reported liabilities of $587 million — most of it owed to banks with first claim on his real estate — with assets of just $249 million in a filing this month.

The local investors, known as Mastro’s Friends and Family program, told The Seattle Times that their investments paid handsome returns for many years — until the real estate and credit markets collapsed.

Some of the investors are angry with him, claiming he continued to take their money even after it became clear he was in financial trouble. But others direct their frustrations at the banks, saying Mastro could have turned things around if he had more time.

Monroe: Tribe reinstates nine banished members

The Snoqualmie tribe has voted to reinstate nine members banished after an election dispute in early 2008.

The Seattle Times reports that those banished waited outside the Evergreen State Fairgrounds longhouse in Monroe for five hours late Saturday night, until finally the tribe welcomed them inside amid cheers.

A federal judge earlier this year partially overturned the banishment, stating the tribe had not followed due process. The membership was tasked with reconsidering the banishment Saturday.

The tribe, which regained federal recognition in 1999, has been mired in election disputes and the banishment dispute for much of the past two years, even as it faces serious operational and budget problems.

Forks: Police find 22 guns at suspect’s home

Forks police said they found a cache of 22 guns at the home of a man they arrested in a fatal shooting last week.

Etienne L. Choquette, a 45-year-old Forks resident, was arrested Friday in the shooting of Antonio Rodriguez-Maldonado, who was found face-down in a downtown street Thursday night. He was being held for investigation of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, while Rodriguez-Maldonado’s ex-girlfriend was being held for investigation of conspiracy to commit murder.

Forks Police Chief Mike Powell said police seized several handguns from a gun safe at Choquette’s home in an attempt to identify the murder weapon.

Spokane: Police search for suspect in 2 killings

Spokane police say they’re looking for a 27-year-old man in connection with a shooting that left two people dead.

Officers found the two victims about 9:30 p.m. Saturday; both men were dead on arrival at a local hospital.

Police told KHQ-TV on Sunday that they have probable cause to arrest the 27-year-old for investigation of two counts of first degree murder. Police are looking for him and an unknown

female who is said to be a person of interest in the case.

Ore.: Wave of vandalism targets churches

Portland police are investigating a wave of vandalism that’s targeting local churches, though they say it appears only some of the cases are related.

At least a dozen churches have been hit in the past month. Two people were arrested in connection with vandalism in southwest Portland, but the crimes have continued in southeast Portland — most recently at Waverly Heights United Church of Christ last week, when two bricks were thrown at the church, shattering a glass door.

The worse damage was at the Pilgrim Lutheran Church, which was hit twice earlier this month. Someone shoved a garden hose inside and flooded the church with 650 gallons of water, forcing the church to replace sheet rock. The church had a work party on Saturday.

Police say the southeast Portland cases could be related.

Associated Press