BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Whatcom County Sheriff’s deputies were the officers who arrested the two Bellingham suspects who now face federal terrorism charges for tampering with railroad tracks.
Sheriff’s spokesperson Deb Slater says deputies responded late Saturday night to a camera activation on BNSF tracks near Marine Drive west of Bellingham.
They spotted Ellen Reiche and Samantha Brooks dressed in black crouched on the tracks and caught them with a cordless drill, wire, magnetic tape and other equipment.
Deputies also found a “shunt” buried under rocks connecting two rails that could disrupt crossing guards, derailment prevention systems and other critical safety infrastructure.
The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and BNSF agents have been investigating shunts on railroad lines in Whatcom County since January and these were the first arrests in the case.