BELLINGHAM — Three women believed a 28-year-old Lynden woman was having an affair with one of their boyfriends and came up with a plan to get rid of her by having her deported.
A Bellingham police spokesman, Lt. Steve Felmley, says two of the women shoved the victim in a car Friday and took her to a Border Patrol station.
A Border Patrol agent, Michael Bermudez, said Monday they took no one into custody and called police to deal with the women.
The police spokesman says they don’t ask crime victims whether they are in the country legally, so the 28-year-old is free.
Meanwhile, the three women are being investigated for unlawful imprisonment.
Felmley says, “I don’t think this plan is working out the way they thought it would.”
Kent: Peanut product recalled
Crown Pacific Fine Foods of Kent is recalling sugar-free milk chocolate peanuts because they were made with peanuts recalled by Peanut Corp. of America and may be contaminated with salmonella.
The Crown Pacific product was distributed only at the Houghton Market in Kirkland, between April 3, 2007, and Friday in 5-pound bags under the brand name Koppers, Sugar Free Milk Chocolate Peanuts.
Crown Pacific says it knows of no illnesses reported in connection with this product.
Olympia: Gregoire wants winter storm help for 33 counties
Gov. Chris Gregoire wants 33 counties to be declared disaster areas so that residents and business owners can get assistance to repair damage from December snow and storms.
Preliminary state and federal damage assessments found an estimated $28.5 million in damage across the state from snow and record cold temperatures.
She wants added: Adams, Asotin, Chelan, Franklin, Whitman, Yakima, Clark, Garfield, Island, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Columbia, Jefferson, Klickitat, Skamania, Spokane, Walla Walla, Benton, Cowlitz, Clallam, Grays Harbor, Kittitas, Skagit, Whatcom, King, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, Pierce, Snohomish, Thurston and Wahkiakum.
This declaration is different from a declaration for January storms that covers 15 counties.
Seattle: Man charged in parents’ deaths
A man accused of fatally beating and stabbing his parents at their home near Kent has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
King County prosecutors filed the charges Monday against 43-year-old Vincent W. Housley.
The bodies of 67-year-old Karen Housley and 66-year-old Joe Housley were found in their home Wednesday by another son.
Court documents allege that Vincent Housley, who was living with his parents, argued with them on Feb. 1 and wound up stabbing them and beating them with a baseball bat.
Court documents say he told police he had been smoking large amounts of crack cocaine, and sold his mother’s 2006 Buick Lacrosse for an ounce of rock cocaine.
Arraignment is scheduled Feb. 18.
Spokane: Woman’s dragging death investigated
Police in Spokane are investigating the death of a woman who apparently was hit by a car and dragged for about a mile.
Investigators believe 42-year-old Susette G. Werner, of Spokane, was hit between 3:30 a.m. and 4 a.m. Sunday.
Her body was found in the street by passers-by, and police followed a trail of evidence about a mile to an intersection where she apparently was struck and where her shoes were found.
The suspect vehicle is described as a boxy green sport utility vehicle or van. The driver is described as a heavyset, tall male wearing a light-colored jacket.
Fired officer reinstated after off-duty sex incident
A Spokane police officer who had sex with a woman in his patrol car will be reinstated to his job after an arbitrator ruled he should have been suspended rather than fired.
Jason Uberuaga will rejoin the police force on Wednesday as a patrol officer.
Police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick fired Uberuaga after he used his department-issued cell phone to photograph a woman baring her breasts and then had sex with her in his patrol car in a tavern parking lot. Uberuaga, a 10-year veteran, was off duty at the time.
The arbitrator ruled the charge of conduct unbecoming an officer was appropriate, but the penalty should have been a 60-day suspension.
Longview: Bridge lights can’t be fixed
The lights will remain out on the Lewis and Clark Bridge, which links Longview and Rainier, Ore.
The Department of Transportation says attempts to prevent the lights from vibrating loose failed. Spokeswoman Annie Linstrom told The Longview Daily News there’s no fix that meets historical preservation standards for the 79-year-old bridge.
The 56 lights were installed atop poles in a 2004 upgrade, but they were brought down by wind and truck vibrations.
Richland: Nuclear power plant off line for a fix
Energy Northwest says its nuclear power plant on the Hanford nuclear reservation is shut down for repair.
The utility consortium says the Columbia Generating Station should be off the Bonneville Power Administration grid for no more than two days.
The plant disconnected Sunday when monitoring equipment indicated a problems with the steam flow through the main turbine.
The 1,150-megawatt plant generates enough electricity for a city the size of Seattle.
Oregon: Suspicious packages filled with canned food
Police evacuated the Keizer branch of U.S. Bank on Monday after suspicious packages were found inside.
Keizer Police Sgt. Greg Barber said the bank manager reported that someone had placed two cardboard boxes in the lobby area. Both boxes were taped shut.
The Salem Police Bomb Squad responded to the scene and examined the boxes with X-ray equipment.
It turns out the suspicious packages contained canned food. The items were then placed in a food donation barrel inside the bank.
From Herald news services
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