Former Snoqualmie resident jailed

Published 3:07 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

Former Snoqualmie resident Brandt Haeg was arrested and

lodged in the King County Jail on Tuesday night, Dec. 28, following an

altercation in the lobby of the Snoqualmie Public Safety building. His

arrest marked the end of a bizarre day, which saw Haeg barge into the office

of Snoqualmie city attorney Pat Anderson and communicate threats to

several local citizens and public officials.

According to the attorney, Haeg apparently first visited the city

administration offices between 3 and 4 p.m. that Tuesday afternoon and asked

to see Mayor R. “Fuzzy” Fletcher. When he was advised the mayor was

not present, Haeg inquired as to the location of Anderson.

About 4 p.m. Haeg visited Anderson in his office overlooking

Railroad Avenue. In his report to Mayor Fletcher and Police Chief Don

Isley, Anderson wrote, “He came in calmly enough through my office door

from the outside. I was at the desk and the door between my office and the

reception area was open.

“He came in and introduced himself _ I would not even know who

he is to pass him on the street, it has been a while since he had any dealings

with the city. I got up and asked what I could do for him and then he

launched into a tirade. He was ranting and raving and waving his arms in my face.”

Anderson said Haeg’s comments were very disjointed. During

the course of his tirade the individual accused Anderson and Mayor

Fletcher of messing with him, accused the Snoqualmie Police of breaking into

his shed and said Anderson’s brother, the “Kirkland police officer,” was also

involved. Anderson noted he did not have a brother.

Haeg also implicated Valley Record editor Mark Morgan

and Issaquah City Administrator Leon Kos and then said he was going to sue

everyone, infect them with the AIDS virus and kill them. Morgan, who

assumed the editor’s job in August, has no connection with Haeg.

Anderson added Haeg’s last comment as he left the office was

something to the effect of, “You can’t [mess] with me. I’m going to get

you all.”

A Snoqualmie Public Safety police officer responded to

Anderson’s phone call within five minutes, and then contacted the other parties

Haeg had named and advised them of the threats. By late afternoon the

police had issued a physical description of Haeg and were keeping an eye out

for him.

According to Sgt. Chuck Holton, Haeg went into the lobby of the

public safety building later Tuesday night and was arrested following a

confrontation with police officers. He was booked into the KCJ on a no bail

warrant on harassment charges.

Holton said the subject was “very incoherent … we didn’t want to

take any chances at all.” He added Haeg was apparently living out of the

back of a pickup truck registered to a Maple Valley resident.

Surprisingly, the King County Jail released Haeg the following

Thursday night. He reportedly returned to Snoqualmie, retrieved his truck

and then departed. He has not been seen since.

While no one is absolutely sure why Haeg threatened several

people, Anderson feels it might be related to his unsuccessful 1997 lawsuit

against the city of Snoqualmie. Haeg sued the city following a failed attempt to

sell a home he’d built on Cedar Street. According to the city, the structure

did not meet code as it had a bathroom on the lower level, in the flood plain.

In his suit, Haeg maintained city officials had approved the design

in the first place, and their subsequent decision both prevented the sale

and “destroyed his reputation.” The

suit was dismissed in July 1998.

“I didn’t even handle the lawsuit,” Anderson commented last

Thursday. “The insurance [company] did.”