By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post
The arrest of a Salina man in connection to a break-in at a tow lot north of Salina also lead to the arrest of another man wanted by the U.S. Marshal Service.
Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan said this morning that a deputy on patrol at approximately 1 a.m. Friday noticed a pickup parked outside an A and A Towing lot at 1332 N. Ohio Street.
On March 27, deputies had been called to the lot for a report of a break-in. In that incident, the fence had been cut and several vehicles stored on the lot had been gone through. On March 28, deputies returned for the report of a construction trailer parked on the lot being burgled.
READ: Multiple tools, other items stolen from construction trailer
On Friday morning, as the deputy was investigating the pickup left unattended on the roadway, he noticed that another section of fence at the lot had been cut and several vehicles had been gone through. Additionally, the deputy found batteries stacked nearby, as if someone planned to load them into the pickup.
At approximately 7 a.m. Friday, another deputy who had gone to the tow lot saw a man walking in a nearby treeline. As the deputy approached, the man ran and disappeared briefly before being apprehended.
Soldan identified the man as George Jess Wagner, 44, of Salina.
During Wagner's arrest and the search that followed, it was determined that the pickup belonged to someone else, however, Soldan said, the pickup was not believed to have been stolen. It did, however, have a license plate on it that was registered to another vehicle. Additionally, Wager was found to be in possession of methamphetamine.
Soldan said Wagner was arrested on the following requested charges.
●Four counts of vehicle burglary
●Three counts of attempted theft
●Criminal trespass
●Criminal damage to property
●Possession of methamphetamine
●Possession of drug paraphernalia
A search warrant was obtained for a room at the Village Inn, 453 S. Broadway Boulevard, where Wagner said he was living. When the search warrant was executed, deputies found Brennen Jefferson, 37, of Salina, inside.
Jefferson had an active U.S. Marshals warrant, Soldan said. Additionally, "quite a bit" of methamphetamine, marijuana, and suspected hallucinogenic mushrooms, or magic mushrooms, were found inside the room, Soldan said.
In addition to the warrant, Jefferson was arrested on the following requested charges, Soldan said.
●Possession of narcotics with the intent to distribute
●Possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute
●Possession of drug paraphernalia
●Possession of hallucinogenic drugs