BELLINGHAM, Wash. — A traffic stop by a Bellingham Police Department patrol officer on Thursday, March 23rd, resulted in multiple new charges against a Bellingham man and the seizure thousands of fentanyl pills.
According to Bellingham Police, a patrol officer stopped a vehicle for several driving violations in the 3000 block of W Maplewood Ave. The driver of the car was the registered owner and identified himself as such to the officer. The man, identified as Dustin Tyler Owen, age 35, was known to be a convicted felon and unable to legally possess firearms as a result.
While standing outside the car, the officer reported seeing the butt of a handgun wedged between the driver’s seat and center console. He asked Owen to exit the car and detained him for unlawful possession of a firearm.
The officer also noted a methamphetamine pipe and a small baggie commonly used for drug packaging in the car. Owen reportedly had just over $5,000 in an open coat pocket when he was detained.
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A BPD K-9 unit was requested to conduct a narcotics sniff on the car and alerted to the presence of narcotics. The car was impounded until a search warrant could be issued.
Upon serving the search warrant, the following evidence was reportedly located in the car.
- a handgun with a loaded magazine
- approximately 2,000 fentanyl pills in two separate bags
- 18 grams of methamphetamine (a single large chunk)
- electronic scale and packaging material commonly used in selling drugs
Owen was booked into Whatcom County Jail charged with suspicion of unlawful possession of a firearm, 2 counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver (fentanyl and methamphetamine)
Owen remained in custody as of March 28th, pending being able to post $245,000 bail.
He had been out of custody after posting appearance bonds while awaiting trial in several court cases where he faced felony charges dating back to 2020 including 1st-degree robbery, 2nd-degree assault and possession of a controlled substance. Some of the bonds had been revoked due to failure to appear at scheduled court hearings.
In 2022, Whatcom News reported Owen was arrested on numerous charges after receiving a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a Bellingham hotel, and having been arrested again later on additional felony charges.