WASHINGTON CITY, Utah - Washington City police say it was the work of their K9 that led to two pounds of meth hidden in a storage unit, and uncovering a potential burglary ring.
Officers were patrolling the area of 500 West and Telegraph Street Sunday afternoon when they came upon a suspicious vehicle. Officer Ed Kantor, spokesman for Washington City police, said officers found a driver asleep in a truck, with evidence of drug use.
That’s when they deployed Hunter, the department’s K9.
“Hunter indicated on the vehicle and on the storage unit that the vehicle was next to,” Kantor said.
Based on that indication, police obtained a search warrant and found two and a half pounds of methamphetamine in the storage unit. Police Chief Jim Keith said that amount of meth has a street value of more than $100,000.
“It was invaluable in this case in having him be able to come there,” Kantor said of having Hunter available.
In addition to the meth, officers also discovered several valuable items that didn’t belong to the suspect. Among those items, officers found rare collectable coins, stock certificates and jewelry. Detectives are still trying to determine who the owners of those items are, and think it may be linked to a larger burglary operation.
Officers arrested the storage unit’s owner, 50-year-old Hurricane resident David Alan Mangum. He was booked into Washington County jail and faces potential charges of possession of methamphetamine and paraphernalia.
Jed Snow works across the street from Minnie’s Storage Units. He was surprised Tuesday to hear about the officers’ find, saying it makes him want to be more vigilant.
“You need to pay more attention to your surroundings,” Snow said. “I didn’t know any of that was going on over there. I was really surprised.”
Detectives are still investigating the stolen items. They’re urging people who may be missing jewelry, collectable coins and stock certificates to contact the Washington City Police Department at 435-986-1515.
