PORT ANGELES — During the arrest of a 27-year-old Port Angeles man who allegedly escaped custody while on community custody supervision, law enforcement officers found more than 330 grams of suspected heroin, they said.
Richard Welches remained in jail Saturday after he was arrested at his residence in the 600 block of Hulse Road on Thursday. The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office and the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement assisted the state Department of Correction in serving an arrest warrant on Welches. He was arrested without incident, according to an OPNET report.
Welches was booked into the Clallam County jail for investigation of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver — heroin, and possession of synthetic narcotic — Fentanyl.
Law enforcement officers said they saw what they suspected to be heroin and drug paraphernalia in Welches’ bedroom. A narcotics police dog detected the presence of additional narcotics in the residence, the said. OPNET detectives then applied for and received a telephonic search warrant.
During the search, eight individually packaged balls of suspected heroin, Fentanyl pills, suspected LSD, ledgers and digital scales were discovered, officers said. The total amount of suspected heroin located in the residence weighed approximately 330.25 grams.
Welches was previously arrested by OPNET at his residence Sept. 20 for investigation of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver — methamphetamine and heroin, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm second degree and one count of possession of a stolen firearm.
During the search of his home in September, detectives said they seized approximately 463.5 grams of suspected methamphetamine, 10.2 grams of heroin, two rifles — one of which had previously been reported stolen — and $14,868 in cash.
