Week in Review

Sunday, June 1

Expect fireworks prices to skyrocket: A massive explosion in China could put a damper on Uncle Sam’s birthday.

On Valentine’s Day, 20 warehouses full of fireworks exploded at a busy Chinese port, crippling the distribution of pyrotechnics from the world’s largest producer of fireworks.

Now fireworks dealers in the United States are struggling to stock up for the Fourth of July.

Scott Pesznecker

Monday, June 2

Scooter sales zoom as drivers look for cheaper ways to get around: When fuel prices get tough, the tough get scooting.

Woody Robinett has a Toyota Tacoma pickup, which is useful for hauling groceries, furniture and other items. But the Tacoma gets about 22 miles per gallon, which hurts with gasoline prices well above $4 per gallon.

Last year, he bought a Honda scooter for his daily commute between Lynnwood and Bothell, im­proving his average gas mileage to between 80 and 100 mpg.

Eric Fetters

Tuesday, June 3

Everett strip club a front for brothel, feds say: Dancers may be doing a lot more than taking off their clothes at Honey’s.

Snohomish County’s only strip club is a haven for prostitution, with dancers blatantly offering sex for money and the club’s owners taking kickbacks from the illegal activities, federal investigators alleged in court documents Monday.

Federal agents and local police raided Honey’s and other clubs owned by Frank Colacurcio Sr. and his son, Frank Colacurcio Jr., on Monday morning.

Diana Hefley and Jackson Holtz

Wednesday, June 4

WASL denies high school diploma to only a few: About three classrooms full of Snohomish County students won’t graduate this spring because they failed the WASL.

Seventy-two seniors in 11 of the county’s school districts met every other requirement to receive a diploma except that of passing the state exam, according to the school districts.

That’s a fraction compared with the number of seniors who won’t graduate because they fell shy of academic credits.

Eric Stevick and Kaitlin Manry

Thursday, June 5

WWII-era flight museum opens at Paine Field: When people walk by the P-51D Mustang fighter plane at the new Flying Heritage Museum at Paine Field, they’ll get to see more than just the restored plane.

They can watch footage of a pilot’s reunion with that very same plane more than 60 years after he flew it in World War II.

After three years in a small warehouse near the Arlington Airport, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen moved his collection of 15 World War II-era planes and other aviation artifacts into a larger hangar at Paine Field.

Bill Sheets

Friday, June 6

16 caught in dragnet: Just after 7 a.m. Tuesday, Peggy Rud woke to heavy pounding at her door.

Nearly a dozen heavily armed officers quickly put Rud, 37, in handcuffs. The arrest came after a federal grand jury indicted her on drug trafficking charges.

Investigators said they arrested 16 career criminals this week in Everett during what federal officials are calling the “Snohomish County Gang Project.”

Jackson Holtz

Saturday, June 7

Feds break up ‘B.C. Bud’ ring: Federal authorities believe a multimillion-dollar drug smuggling ring with ties to the Hells Angels used Snohomish County as a shipment hub to distribute thousands of pounds of marijuana and cocaine across the U.S. and Canada.

Federal authorities on Friday announced the arrest and indictment of the suspected kingpin, along with three Snohomish County residents suspected of drug trafficking. Nearly 40 people have been charged in connection with the suspected drug ring.

Diana Hefley

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett will welcome new CEO in June

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Search underway to find missing Everett child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday morning at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive.

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.