Forest Service probes ski area drug raid

Residents and business owners in Taos Ski Valley say the “swaggering” demeanor and heavily armed presence of a U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer assigned to the ski area may have set the tone for a controversial drug sweep that now has the agency investigating itself. Jackie Banks of the Forest Service’s Kaibab National Forest in Arizona, along with Cheri Bowen, a law enforcement patrol captain also from Arizona, are part of an “After Action Review Team” that arrived in the ski valley on Thursday to meet with valley officials and residents about what happened on Feb. 22. Ski area chief operating officer Gordon Briner, village of Taos Ski Valley Mayor Neal King and village administrator Mark Fratrick met with Bowen, Banks and another review team member on Thursday afternoon. “Whatever their findings are, they are going to put it out to the press,” Briner said. He said the question of who ordered the drug sweep was one of the things discussed. “That is high on their list of things to identify.” Banks said in a telephone interview later she could not say who ordered the operation and that’s part of the review. “We want to make this as transparent as possible,” she said. “We’ve never experienced anything like this at Taos Ski Valley in the past as far back as anyone can remember,” said Briner. The review team will complete a draft report on the drug raid but it’s unknown how long that will take. “We are working quickly, this is important to us both personally and professionally,” said Banks. She and Bowen said that, following their site visit Thursday, they’ll talk to more people by phone if necessary. Several valley business operators, including Kent Forte, who manages the Edelweiss Lodge and Spa and is on the board of the Taos Ski Valley Chamber of Commerce, cited the attitude and behavior of a particular Forest Service officer as problematic. Forte did not know the officer’s name but said, “there is a new Forest Service guy up here who seems kind of power hungry.” “I’ve seen him around and he’s always wearing a bullet-proof vest and packing a lot of heat,” said Forte. Business owner and chamber board member Bob Reminger said, “there’s a local guy who is just way gung-ho.” Bowen identified the Forest Service Law Enforcement Officer assigned to the ski valley as Tommy Barr...more