Wyoming News Briefs

Woman jailed after drugs sent from India to Torrington

TORRINGTON (WNE) — A Torrington woman remained in custody in the Goshen County Jail last week, facing felony drug charges stemming from a warrant search involving local and federal enforcement agencies.

Torrington Police Chief Timothy Hurd said Melody Dawn Boalch, 42, was arrested shortly after 11 a.m. Dec. 19 at a residence in the 1600 block of East F Street in Torrington when Torrington Police, assisted by officers from the federal Homeland Security, Drug Enforcement Agency, Postal Service and Customs and Board Protection executed a search warrant.

Hurd said Thursday the warrant netted more than 2,000, 100 milligram tablets of the opioid drug tapentadol, along with oxycodone and fentanyl. Information leading to the arrest resulted when U.S. Customs officials intercepted a package from India, bound for Torrington, Hurd said.

The tapentadol has a retail street value in excess of $2,500, Hurd said.

Boalch was jailed on felony possession of a Schedule II controlled substance, possession with intent to deliver of a Schedule II controlled substance and misdemeanor charges of child endangerment. As of Thursday afternoon, she was being held without bond in the Goshen County Jail, according to information on the Sheriff’s Department website.

Hurd praised the cooperation between his department and the various federal agencies involved which led to the arrest.

“I want enough people to we’re not going to tolerate this,” he said. “The public needs to know this stuff out there and we’re combating this.

“All the different federal agencies were great to us,” Hurd said. “When we work together, this is what happens.”

UW receives dementia grant

CASPER (WNE) — A University of Wyoming department and the school’s center on aging received an $866,453 federal grant to work with Albany County organizations to better help dementia patients and their caregivers.

The grant will last three years and is provided by the Administration for Community Living, a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, according to a university press release sent earlier this month.

The grant will focus on three main groups, the school said: those with dementia; those with “intellectual and developmental disabilities who may have dementia or be high risk of developing” the disease; and those family members or adults caring for those with dementia.

The press release notes Wyoming’s aging population and the strong association between aging and dementia.

Wyoming’s aging population has been of particular concern to health officials here, who have warned that the state will need to prepare for more residents who need long-term care.

“Aging is the No. 1 risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias,” Robin Barry, an assistant director in the psychology department, said in the release. “With an aging population, a greater proportion of our population is going to be diagnosed with some form of dementia. Our communities need to be ready to meet the needs of people with dementia.”

Barry — who will lead the project — and her team will provide counseling for those in early stages of dementia, connect with ongoing support for those living alone, training to health care providers and caregivers, and more education for community members and fi rst responders to better spot dementia and connect those with the condition with the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Support Center.

Man sentenced to prison on sex offenses

GILLETTE (WNE) — A Gillette man who was previously convicted of sexual crimes against young girl recently received a long prison sentences for new, similar offenses.

Joseph Lajeunesse, 34, who was convicted of two counts of first-degree sexual abuse after a three-day jury trial in August, was sentenced to 30 to 50 years in prison and fined $1,000 for each count.

Although the jury found Lajeunesse guilty of twice forcing a young girl to have sex with him, at his sentencing he professed his innocence and said he had been unduly influenced by his friend, Charles Mathisen, who is serving 45 years in federal prison for producing pornography of a young Gillette girl.

Twelve years ago, Lajeunesse was convicted of viewing 600 images of child pornography and downloading 200 images of child pornography, according to court documents. Many of the images were of adult men forcing young girls to have sex.

“For this case, I think the bottom line about a sentence is something I heard back when I was a public defender, that prison is not for somebody you’re mad at, but it’s for somebody you’re afraid of,” said Campbell County Attorney Ron Wirthwein at Lajeunesse’s sentencing.

Wirthwein recommended consecutive sentences of 35 to 50 years “given (Lajeunesse’s) history starting with child pornography images and culminating into the actual predation of a little girl.”

Defense attorney Bob O’Neil requested Lajeunesse receive concurrent sentences, arguing that after 35 years, Lajeunesse would no longer be a danger to the community.

Calling Lajeunesse’s actions “exceedingly serious offenses,” District Judge Michael N. “Nick” Deegan issued consecutive sentences of 30-50 years.

More than 100 pounds of marijuana seized in traffic stop

ROCK SPRINGS (WNE) — A Connecticut man and woman are behind bars after county deputies found over 100 pounds of marijuana in their vehicle. 

At about 10 p.m. Sunday, a Sweetwater County Sheriff ‘s Office K9 unit observed an erratically-driven Toyota Sienna minivan traveling east on Interstate 80 several miles east of Point of Rocks and stopped it, Sweetwater County Sheriff Mike Lowell said. 

The deputy identified the driver as 60-year-old Stephen Joseph Lapoint and his passenger as 46-year-old Maria Felicita Jurado, both of Wethersfield, Connecticut. 

A subsequent investigation and search of the vehicle uncovered 107.9 pounds of marijuana, according to a Sweetwater County Sheriff ‘s Office press release. 

Lapoint is charged with alleged felony-grade possession of a controlled substance, manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, and conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance. 

Jurado is facing a charge of alleged conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance. 

Both remain in custody at the Sweetwater County Detention Center.

Two fined for stealing antlers from public land

JACKSON (WNE) — Two Wyoming residents will be without hunting privileges for the next two years, and thinner in the wallet, for having poached antlers off public land during the seasonal closure.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department sent word last week that Matthew Nelson, of Cheyenne, and Jason Reidel, of Pinedale, were caught snowmobiling out of an area near the Hoback Rim north of Pinedale where bull elk were wintering. They had 70 pounds of elkhorn aboard their sleds. The infractions date to last April but were recently adjudicated.

“These were intentional, planned violations and the consequences were a result of those violations,” Game and Fish’s Big Piney Game Warden, Adam Hymas, said in a press release.

Sublette County Circuit Court Judge Curt Haws fined Reidel and Nelson $1,550 each and revoked their hunting privileges for two years. The loss of hunting privileges carries over to 47 other states. The antlers were confiscated and returned to the field.

The antler gathering prohibition in Wyoming covers all public lands on the western side of the Continental Divide. The regulation defines “collection” as attempting to “search for, locate, stockpile or possess shed antlers.”

As shed hunting is gaining popularity, violations are becoming more numerous, and Game and Fish wardens are stepping up enforcement.

Wardens working out of Game and Fish’s Jackson region struggle annually with antler poaching. During last year’s May 1 opener there were around 30 citations for trespassing onto the National Elk Refuge, and those trespassers hauled with them about 50 pounds of antlers. 

Ski area opens for first time in 15 years

GREYBULL (WNE) — Greybull skiers and snowboarders who for the last 15 years have been traveling great distances to find fun on the slopes have reason to rejoice this holiday season: Antelope Butte is reopening Dec. 28.

Jeff Grant, president of the nonprofit Antelope Butte Foundation, confirmed it Monday afternoon, announcing not only the date of the grand opening, but also a stretch of nine straight days of skiing (Dec. 28-Jan. 6) at the recreational area, which is located 35 miles east of Greybull on U.S. Highway 14.

It will be a rolling start, as the lodge won’t be ready to go, nor will the big lift that takes skiers to the top of the hill be operational. But the new “carpet” for beginners will be operational, as will the smaller of the two lifts, known as the park lift.

An old garage has been remodeled and will serve as the temporary lodge, where visitors can rent skis and warm themselves up. Part of it will also be set aside for ski patrol purposes.

The 11,400-square foot lodge is undergoing renovations and won’t be completed this season, Grant said. A “legacy campaign” is underway to raise the money required to complete it. About $1 million is needed and Grant said “a nice dent” has already been put into it.

When it’s done, the lodge will offer food service, a bar and retail merchandise such as hoodies, T-shirts and hats, as well as the rental shop.

In the winter, Antelope Butte offers 225 skiable acres and 23 marked trails and runs.