Officers Crawl Through Sand, Brush, Slap Cuffs on “Popeye”, Other Suspect
A couple of weeks ago (July17), we told you about Hermiston police and Umatilla County Sheriff's locating a HUGE stash of stolen property on private land in a rural area of Umatilla County.
Authorities raided a property on Echols Road, and found stolen trucks, John Deere front loaders, copper wire, and many other items worth tens of thousands of dollars. But they couldn't find their primary suspect, 25-year-old Zachary Bartz.
But now, Hermiston police have Bartz and his accomplice in custody, thanks to some old-fashioned military style tactics.
Police received a tip about a stolen trailer a couple of days ago, and were able to deploy to the location in the dark without any notice. Police officers literally crawled silently through sagebrush, sand and weeds to where they could see the two suspects standing by the stolen trailer. The officers were literally 2-3 feet away before they sprang up and subdued Bartz and Charles Barker (the older looking man) and put cuffs on them.
According to one officer, the two were literally 'stunned' and offered no resistance. Barker and Bartz are apparently "regulars" in the Umatilla County jail, only this time they're facing much more severe charges. Hermiston officials say more details are coming later this week, it's believed they were masterminding (or were part of) a huge burglary and theft ring.