EDMONDS — A Seattle man passed out in a van loaded with drugs, cash and guns, and tried to walk into jail with $17,000 hidden in his pants, according to Edmonds police.
An officer on patrol noticed a green Honda Odyssey by itself in the middle of a WinCo parking lot last week at 21900 Highway 99, said Edmonds police Sgt. Shane Hawley.
“It’s 2 o’clock in the morning, and there are very few cars in the middle of the parking lot,” Hawley said.
Police saw a man, 38, slumped over in the driver’s seat, and a sleeping woman rocking back-and-forth next to him. She woke up and opened the door when the officer knocked. At her feet sat a glass pipe with white residue, according to a probable cause statement. She tried to wake the driver. He did not get up.
Then the officer noticed a handgun by the driver’s feet. The man eventually awoke, dazed, with the officer aiming a gun at him. Police ordered him not to make any sudden moves. The man unlocked the door, and he was arrested. The .38-caliber Smith and Wesson revolver had been loaded with three bullets.
In the van police later discovered 13 ounces of suspected methamphetamine, 4 ounces of heroin and a 20-gauge shotgun, Hawley said. The man had another 1.8 ounces of heroin in the shape of a hockey puck in his pocket, along with $2,700 in cash, according to police.
The woman, 24, was cited for possessing drug paraphernalia.
Police took the man to the Snohomish County Jail. As he was booked, officers found another $17,700 in cash hidden in the man’s pants, near his groin. The cash may be the subject of a civil forfeiture case, since police suspect it’s drug money.
The man had a felony record for possessing a stolen vehicle, possessing drugs and possessing stolen property. He had a warrant out for his arrest through the Department of Corrections.
Prosecutors charged him this week with unlawful possession of a firearm and possession of heroin while on community custody.
He remained in jail Friday.
Caleb Hutton: 425-339-3454; chutton@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snocaleb.
