Tacoma police have arrested a 38-year-old employee of a medical marijuana dispensary on suspicion of drug-related charges.

Investigators booked the man into Pierce County Jail shortly after noon today on suspicion of unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, unlawful delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful manufacturing of a controlled substance.

The man was arrested at his Tacoma home as part of an ongoing investigation into activity at the Tacoma Hemp Company, which is located near South Fourth Street and Tacoma Avenue, police spokesman Mark Fulghum said.

The investigation by the department’s narcotics officers was launched …

Read more »

A small plane has crashed south of Graham in Pierce County, killing the pilot and injuring his passenger, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department and Graham Fire & Rescue reported.

Paramedics took the passenger to a Tacoma hospital for treatment of his serious injuries, sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

“He was awake and talking to our crews,” said Tony Judd, assistant chief for Graham Fire.

The pilot died from his injuries at the scene. Both men appear to be in their 60s, Judd said.

The incident is believed to have occurred in the 26400 block of 150th Avenue East, which is …

Read more »

King County sheriff’s deputies are searching for a 10-week-old female Scottish Terrier puppy and the burglar who stole her from a Burien pet store early today.

The break-in at A Place for Pets, 431 S.W. 152nd St., occurred shortly after 4 a.m., the Sheriff’s Office reported. The puppy was removed from her kennel. Nothing else appears to have been stolen, deputies reported.

Deputies on routine patrol got a call about the burglar alarm sounding at the store at 4:12 a.m. They found the store’s rear door open. They suspect the burglar got inside by removing an air conditioner unit from …

Read more »

Lakewood police are investigating a possible sighting this afternoon of Kyron Horman, the missing 7-year-old Oregon boy.

Around 4:30 p.m., a caller saw a boy matching Kyron’s description in the back seat of a car headed northbound on South Tacoma Way in Lakewood, according to scanner chatter. The driver was described as a white male.

Kyron vanished June 4. He was last seen walking to his second-grade classroom after a school science fair.

5:50 UPDATE: Officers tracked down the owner of the vehicle that was spotted, assistant chief Mike Zaro said. The boy in the backseat was confirmed to be …

Read more »

Residents are invited to give their opinions on the Tacoma Police Department next month as the agency seeks to become nationally accredited.

Assessors from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies will be in Tacoma from Aug. 14 to 17 to evaluate the department and see how it complies with 464 law enforcement standards. As part of the assessment, the CALEA evaluators will hold a public hearing Aug. 15 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Tacoma Police Headquarters, 3701 S. Pine St.

“It is very important that the on-site assessors receive direct input from citizens and other stakeholders …

Read more »

A Pierce County jury deliberated for less than three hours this week before convicting a 39-year-old man of three crimes connected to a crackdown on the Hilltop Crips street gang.

Kenneth Hawkins is to be sentenced Aug. 6 after being found guilty of conspiracy to commit robbery and car theft, first-degree robbery and theft of a motor vehicle. Prosecutors argued he and a number of other suspected Crips beat and robbed a man of his car in August 2009 at a bar on South Tacoma Way.

The jury delivered its verdict Tuesday after a four-day trial. Jurors did not make …

Read more »

King County sheriff’s deputies are searching for a 51-year-old man suspected of raping and robbing a woman earlier this week.

A state Department of Corrections warrant has been issued for John A. Carter, the Sheriff’s Office reported. Carter has not yet been charged in the Covington incident.

Investigators allege Carter lured a woman he’d known for years to a home in Covington. He sexually assaulted her at knifepoint for several hours, then made her drive to an ATM in Renton just before 3 a.m. Tuesday. He allegedly made the woman withdraw cash and, when the victim refused to get back …

Read more »

An explosive device destroyed a portable bathroom this morning at Tacoma’s Blueberry Park.

Tacoma police received several calls just after 6 a.m. about an explosion, police spokesman Mark Fulghum said. At least one caller reported seeing smoke.

Officers responded to the park, 7402 E. D St., and found the destroyed outhouse, Fulghum said. No injuries were reported.

The department was investigating.

It was not immediately known whether the incident was connected to a homemade explosive found last Friday in a portable toilet at the Tacoma Public Utilities Transfer Station. That explosive did not go off. Lakewood police were investigating …

Read more »