MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake resident Todd Voth was recognized for his assisting Moses Lake police in capturing a convicted felon.

On March 19, while police were engaged in a foot pursuit to apprehend a suspected of carrying drugs and a firearm, Voth caught sight of what was happening and tackled the man to the ground.

“On that morning, officers were attempting to serve a search warrant for drugs and firearms at a residence believed to be occupied by a convicted felon,” said Moses Lake police Chief Dean Mitchell. “During surveillance of the residence, officers observed the suspect leave in a vehicle.”

When officers stopped the vehicle, the suspect fled on foot.

The foot pursuit led police through backyards and over chain link fences until the suspect made a break through a field.

“One officer observed the suspect running through a field toward what the officers thought was another officer in pursuit,” Mitchell said. “The officers observed the suspect being tackled to the ground. When the officers arrived on the scene, they found Todd Voth holding down the suspect until he could be taken into custody.”

Mitchell presented Voth with a plaque in honor of his efforts helping police. He was applauded by the Moses Lake City Council and the audience.

“In retrospect looking back, this probably wasn’t the smartest thing for me to do, especially, at 50 years old,” Voth said.

Afterward he spent a couple days in bed recuperating from the incident.

“I truly believe that if we as citizens of Moses Lake gathered together, say no to crime, say no to drugs, say no to graffiti and car prowls … open your eyes, open your ears, look around (and) call (police),” he said. “Moses Lake (is) still one of the cities you can go to (where) you can walk down the street in the morning and you can say ‘hi’ to somebody and they will say ‘good morning’ back. That means a lot.”

He said the police chief and his officers should be thanked as well.

“A month ago, my job site got robbed and without the wonderful detective work of Dean and his staff, I would probably have been out of business for a lot longer than I was,” Voth said. “They recovered my tools and I was able to get back to work and finish the house that I was working on.”