Ambushed

An air shipment of illicit drugs from Seattle with a street value of almost 10mil is lost in an early spring snowstorm over the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho and Montana. The aircraft's emergency beacon was presumed to be damaged, and thus the plane not readily locatable. A flight plan had not been posted with the FAA, but the crew had inquired of weather in route to Missoula. Though the planned route was not known, certain routes could be presumed in traveling from Seattle to Missoula. In the likely scenario where the maximum loaded single engine freight hauler, Cessna 210, encountered severe wing icing, it could have been brought down rather rapidly in the storm. Whether the plane crashed into a peak or whether the pilot had chosen to fly over a lower elevation pass is a matter of speculation.

The cargo was unknown except to a few who have every intention of mounting a recovery without scrutiny by the public or law enforcement. This criminal group is unable to locate the downed plane and is frantically trying every angle to get a hint to where it might be. Up until now, two days later, news of the missing plane has gone without much notice with the residents in and around the town of Camden. A motel manager was told of two gunshots heard by a motel guest and reported a murder to the sheriff that evening. The deceased was Samuel Henderson. The sheriff found out quickly that this man was a DEA investigator from Salt Lake City. Also, she was told that he had spent several years for DEA in Columbia, SA. Why he was in Camden at this particular time was the question on the sheriff's mind. No one yet knew of the downed plane and that it contained illicit narcotics.

Bernie Ziegner grew up in Philadelphia. His career involved work as an electronic engineer for major defense contractors. He lived in Arizona for over two decades and now resides in Massachusetts. He can often be found in western Montana where he enjoys nature, horses, cattle and the local people.