News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sisters police arrested a Bend man and a Redmond woman Friday, July 25, on drug, theft and weapons charges stemming from a search of their vehicle.
Rodger Leroy Haywood, 34, and Sharon Edith Groetsch, 48, were booked on charges of possession, manufacture and distribution of a controlled substance and first degree theft of a firearm. Haywood also faces charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and driving while suspended.
A Sisters officer arrested Haywood after he ran his license number and discovered a warrant for felony Driving While Suspended. According to police, the officer had encountered Haywood earlier when, on an unrelated matter, he contacted a Sisters resident who had been a passenger in Haywood's car.
When patting Haywood down, the officer reportedly found a large amount of cash in Haywood's pocket.
The Sisters man and Haywood's girlfriend, Groetsch, allegedly removed some of Groetsch and Haywood's personal belongings from the vehicle, which was to be impounded. One of the items the Sisters resident removed was a black lock box from under the driver's seat.
According to police reports, Groetsch, Haywood and the Sisters man all said they didn't own the box.
The officer required that the box be left with the vehicle since the owner couldn't be determined. He searched the vehicle prior to having it towed and found a .22 High Standard pistol in the glovebox. The pistol was found to have been stolen from a person in Sunriver.
The officer arrested Groetsch for first degree theft in connection with the pistol.
Sisters police later obtained a search warrant on the box and the white powder found inside it allegedly tested positive for methamphetamine. Sisters police then added the additional drug charges against Haywood and Groetsch.
Groetsch was lodged in Deschutes County Jail on $50,000 bail; Haywood's bail was set at $62,500.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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