From the Eureka Police Department:

On 12/01/15, at about 11:00 a.m., the Eureka Police Department’s MIST/Homeless officers, assisted by detectives with the Problem Oriented Policing Unit (POP), served a search warrant at an illegal camp in the greenbelt to the rear of the 3300 block of Broadway. The warrant was obtained in response to complaints of drug sales activity being perpetrated by the illegal lodgers residing there, John Allen Eccles (56 of Eureka) and Tabitha Lyn MacDonald (30 of Eureka). Detectives also simultaneously searched a related storage unit on the 4100 block of Broadway.

While searching the suspects’ camp and storage unit, detectives located three pounds of processed marijuana, heroin use paraphernalia, and stolen property. An electric guitar, bicycle, and a gas powered rototiller were confirmed as stolen. The rototiller was taken from a nearby department store at the mall on 11/30/15. The bicycle was stolen on 11/18/15 from outside a business on the 1400 block of 5th Street. The guitar had been reported stolen in the Sheriff’s jurisdiction in March 2013. Additionally, several other items were collected for safekeeping as suspected stolen property, including a number of tools.

MacDonald and Eccles were subsequently arrested and transported to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility. MacDonald was booked for possession of marijuana for sale, maintaining a place for drug sales/use, possession of stolen property, probation violation, possession of drug paraphernalia, and a warrant for petty theft. Eccles was booked for maintaining a space for drug sales/use, possession of marijuana for sale, felon in possession of a stun gun, possession of stolen property, possession of drug paraphernalia, probation violation, a warrant for DUI, and for knowingly bringing a controlled substance into the jail. (Over ½ gram of tar heroin.)

MacDonald’s and Eccles’ illegal camp will also be removed from its location on City Property along the waterfront due to their blatant violation of the clearly established behavioral expectations set forth in EPD’s “Homeless Tracking and Accountability” document. This flier has been extensively distributed among the homeless camps in the area. Eccles and MacDonald were both handed a copy of the flier the week prior to the search warrant’s service. They signed the form acknowledging and agreeing to its behavioral expectations, which state in part, “I also understand that criminal behavior such as violence, theft, possession of illegal weapons and drug trafficking will cause immediate and permanent removal from this area.”