EVERETT — A man was arrested on federal drug-trafficking charges Tuesday morning as he left a group home he operates that advertise services for recovering addicts.
Timothy A. Rehberg, 50, lived at the home on the 3400 block of Lombard Avenue, federal authorities said. He’s under investigation for peddling heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana. He also reportedly grew marijuana at a barn along Larimer Road in east Everett.
Rehberg is listed as president of I.C. Clean People Recovery Housing. Federal agents raided the nonprofit’s headquarters on the 2900 block of Everett Avenue, along with Rehberg’s home and barn.
The arrest is one sign that many supposedly clean and sober houses are neither clean nor sober. The manager of another clean and sober house here recently pleaded guilty to murdering a tenant after plying him with methamphetamine.
The city of Everett has been rethinking how property codes might govern housing for people with substance abuse problems.
“We are taking a look at this to see whether there’s more we can do in terms of regulation,” city spokeswoman Meghan Pembroke said Thursday.
Cynthia McKinney, 60, used to live in Rehberg’s Lombard Avenue home, but has long since moved away.
The modest one-story house with a basement is listed on county assessor’s records as a duplex with two bedrooms.
Yet when McKinney lived there three years ago, it was divided into 10 units. She and other tenants complained about cockroaches and another resident who had a hoarding problem. While rooms didn’t have locking doors, the home’s thermostat was locked up to prevent residents from adjusting the temperature.
At the time, McKinney said rent was a little more than $400 per month.
“People like myself, down on your luck, have no ability to pay rent on a quality place,” she said. “We get stuck in these situations and we have to suffer through them until something better comes along.”
McKinney, who is disabled, said she got stuck there because of financial troubles, not because of addiction. She took the cheapest place she could find. Other tenants suffered from mental health conditions or continued to do drugs, despite claims of recovery housing.
The city of Everett does not issue permits for clean and sober housing, Pembroke said. The homes are governed by other rules, including the federal fair housing act. Under federal laws, recovering addicts are considered disabled, and therefore more tenants are allowed under one roof, she said.
“In the past, our first responders have often found that the occupants of these types of housing units are not sober, and that the housing has been modified without permits to create substandard conditions in violation of our building code,” Pembroke said.
The city’s efforts to combat homelessness are focused on a different kind of housing with extensive oversight and access to social services, she said.
Some Snohomish County housing vouchers for people at risk of becoming homeless have been used at I.C. Clean People properties. The county does not license housing or determine where the vouchers are used, county human services director Mary Jane Brell Vujovic said.
“Because of our tight housing market, we have encouraged people to find nonprofit or for-profit housing that fits their needs and budget, but they have the necessary freedom to choose where they live,” Brell Vujovic said in a statement. “We will continue to be strong advocates for our most vulnerable residents and we will not allow those who would exploit the most vulnerable among us to deter us from our vital work.”
The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Seattle Police Department started investigating Rehberg after receiving a tip in December about alleged drug dealing, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle.
Investigators then learned about Rehberg’s nonprofit, whose stated mission was “to provide housing for recovering addicts.” State records list I.C. Clean People as inactive, with an expired registration as of July.
Rehberg operated multiple homes for people trying to get clean, including people under court supervision, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
In tax forms for 2014, Rehberg’s nonprofit reported a budget of $104,683. In charging papers, federal authorities said the housing group was “receiving funding from numerous state agencies.”
At the time of his arrest, Rehberg had two cellphones and $6,000 in cash, along with an electronic court-monitoring bracelet on his ankle, according to charges filed Thursday in federal court.
Investigators reportedly found a pound of crystal methamphetamine and a quarter pound of heroin in his north Everett office. He also is being investigated for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Agents said he had a loaded revolver in his safe.
Rehberg has a 1993 felony conviction in Skagit County for possessing marijuana with the intent to manufacture or deliver it.
He also has a misdemeanor for domestic violence from 2012, for which he received a suspended sentence with work release and five years of supervision. He was accused of hitting a woman in the face with an industrial flashlight.
He also was in drug treatment last year, with group therapies and drug tests scheduled throughout November, court records show. A Dec. 1 progress report said he was not complying with the treatment requirements.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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