CUBS CHEER TEAM CROWNED NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
FIRST WEEKEND ART IN TOLEDO
GRANT FUNDS BENEFIT COMMERCIAL FISHERMEN
Sports PAGE B8
Coast Life PAGE B1
Business PAGE A8
Wednesday, January 29, 2025
Three arrests result from child luring investigations JEREMY C. RUARK Lincoln County Leader
The city of Toledo has operated a 911 emergency dispatch center out of its police department for many years, but the city is currently in negotiations to contract with Willamette Valley Communications Center in Salem to provide those services. (Photo by Steve Card)
Toledo to contract for 911 dispatch services STEVE CARD Lincoln County Leader
The city of Toledo is currently in negotiations with the Willamette
$2
Lincoln County, Oregon
Valley Communications Center in Salem for the handling Toledo’s 911 emergency calls in the future. The city has had its
own 911 dispatch center for many years, but staffing shortages and limited funding have
See DISPATCH, page A7
From late December to mid-January, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office deputies used decoy social media accounts for online child luring investigations. During these investigations, deputies posed as an underage child on various online social media platforms and were contacted by adults wanting to meet for sexual encounters, according to LCSO Lt. Karl Vertner. The investigations have led to the arrest of three Lincoln County residents.
Ruben Martinez Jimenez, 28, of Newport, was arrested Jan. 15 and charged with the crimes of luring a minor and online sexual corruption of a child in the first degree. “At the time of his arrest, Ruben was communicating with the decoy account and arrived at a predetermined location to meet with the underage child for a sexual encounter,” Vertner said. Jimenez was arrested and lodged at the Lincoln County Jail without incident. James Tybierius
Kirk, of Siletz, 32, was arrested Jan. 16 and charged with the crimes of luring a minor and online sexual corruption of a child in the second degree. “At the time of his arrest, James was communicating with the decoy account and made a plan with the underage child to meet for a sexual encounter. He was lodged at the Lincoln County Jail without further incident,” Vertner said. Adan Chavez-Pena, 43, of Newport, was arrested Jan. 21 and charged See ARRESTS, page A7
So long, sunshine
The sun is pictured dropping below the horizon underneath the main arch of Newport’s Yaquina Bay Bridge on Friday, Jan. 24. The recent stretch of sunny weather has been a nice break from the traditional winter rains along the coast, but according to forecasters, things will be getting back to normal this week. As of press deadline, the outlook was showing a long stretch of rainy weather heading this way, beginning Thursday. (Photo by Steve Card)
Changes made to city of Newport Returning sea otters to Oregon, volunteer committee structure Northern California coasts STEVE CARD Lincoln County Leader
Some significant changes to the wide variety of volunteer committees serving the city of Newport were made by members of the Newport City Council at their meeting held on Tuesday, Jan. 21. The city council held a public hearing before making the decision to approve the proposed changes, which have been under review for months. In March of 2024, the city council authorized
the formation of a committee structure study work group to look at possible modifications, if any, to the committee structure. The purpose was to review the financial and non-financial impacts of the current structure for the city and stakeholders and possibly recommend structural and operational improvements. This committee structure study work group held a series of meetings before issuing its findings in August 2024. In
this report, the committee stated, “The study determined that Newport has nearly three times as many committees as its peers of similar size and scope within the state of Oregon. Our review determined that many of the advisory bodies are working effectively, and are integral components of the governance structure at the city of Newport. We also discovered that in other cases, some of the advisory See CHANGES, page A6
JEREMY C. RUARK Lincoln County Leader
The Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians (CTSI) has been awarded a three-year, $1.56 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to support tribal efforts to return sea otters to the Oregon and Northern California coasts. The grant is through the America the Beautiful See OTTER, page A4
The sea otter has been listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act since 1977. (Courtesy photo)
1422 N Coast Hwy 101 • Newport • 541-265-7731
Warranty: All Napa parts come with a nation wide 3 year 36k warranty.