The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

Wahkiakum County Sheriff Department officers arrested a Cathlamet man last week and charged him with theft of fishing gear, Sheriff Mark Howie reported July 24.

Howie said during the previous week, a Cathlamet resident reported $650 in fishing poles and reels had been stolen from his boat after he saw the gear posted on Craigslist with the corresponding photos. Sheriff Howie and deputies set up a sting operation to buy the stolen items and catch the seller with stolen property.

While dressed in plain clothes, deputies called the seller on Craigslist and arranged to meet him to purchase the gear. Within hours, deputies were arresting a man in Longview for trafficking the stolen property, a felony charge. They discovered methamphetamine in the seller's possession at the time of arrest, and he is also being charged in Cowlitz County for felony possession of illegal drugs.

Information obtained at the time of arrest lead deputies to another individual in Cathlamet, who is also being charged for trafficking the stolen property.