The two suspects arrested Thursday following a multi-agency pursuit through Thurston County were charged in Lewis County Friday for allegedly stealing over $100,000 from the Cowlitz Indian Tribe.
Michael L. Draper, 47, of Cinebar, faces five counts of first-degree theft, as does his alleged accomplice, Elicia D. Kellam, 42, of Olympia.
Each count is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $20,000 in fines.
Draper is a former employee of the tribe.
In its affidavit of probable cause, the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation is ongoing and indicated more theft charges may be added as the tribe continues its audit.
Both defendants made preliminary appearances in Lewis County Superior Court Friday. Judge Joely Yeager set bail at $50,000 cash or bond for each, in agreement with the state’s request.
Draper and Kellam are scheduled for arraignments on Jan. 29.
Speaking on Kellam’s criminal history, Yeager said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many … felony property crimes by a defendant.”
She called Draper’s history “just about as significant.”
According to the affidavit, Kellam has a dozen convictions for such crimes as forgery, first-degree theft and second-degree identity theft. Draper, meanwhile, has convictions for possession of a stolen firearm, first-degree possession of stolen property, possession of a stolen vehicle, forgery, attempting to elude, identity theft and bail jumping.
Yeager called Draper a flight risk.
During the hearing, Senior Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher noted that he had actually prosecuted Draper for earlier crimes that resulted in a lengthy prison sentence.
He added that Draper had allegedly tried to access his 401(k) from his job with the Cowlitz Tribe for bail money.
Draper indicated he was unsuccessful in that attempt, since it required employer approval.
Meagher said that Draper and Kellam are accused of “putting together essentially a fake company” to defraud the Cowlitz Tribe out of likely more than $100,000.
The affidavit lists five fraudulent purchases flagged by the tribe’s housing accountant, ranging from $4,475 on the low end to $9,936.90 on the high end for items pertaining to a water filtration system, a water heater and two new water pumps.
The tribal contract coordinator reportedly confirmed with Cowlitz Tribal Police that the work for those services was never done.
The purchases allegedly began on Nov. 17, 2025, and concluded on Jan. 2. Together they form the basis for the five counts of first-degree theft charged against the defendants.
“The contractor Draper allegedly used to pay for this work was ‘Kellam Environmental Services,’ the affidavit states. “The address for this company is the Olympia address on Elicia Kellam's driver's license.”
Police used this information to link Kellam to the alleged thefts.
According to the affidavit, Draper was able to steal the tribal funds by allegedly “bypassing normal approval routes” and approving those fraudulent purchase orders himself.
The tribe reportedly gave Draper administrative leave paperwork on Jan. 6, and told him to leave the tribe’s property and “return all tribal property, including credit cards.”
He and Kellam had been living on tribal property before the ban.
After being placed on leave, Draper allegedly charged $12,731 on a tribal account for a Home Depot purchase. Surveillance video also allegedly shows Draper and Kellam stealing a generator from the tribe’s property on Jan. 5, and picking it up in Draper’s truck on Jan. 6.
Prior to their arrest Thursday evening, officers from the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, Cowlitz Tribal Police, Washington State Patrol, Chehalis Tribal Police and Lewis County Sheriff’s Office collaborated to apprehend Draper and Kellam during a high-speed chase in Thurston County.
The chase nearly ended in a head-on collision.
According to Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders, who wrote about the incident on Facebook, at one point, a deputy “relocated the suspect vehicle on a one-lane private driveway where they went head on at each other before the driver fled through a field and crashed.”
Later, the state patrol’s airplane Smokey arrived and located “both the truck and the fleeing driver within a few seconds,” according to Sanders.
Police reportedly located Kellam walking through a person’s yard and detained her. They found Draper with the additional help of K9 Igo.
According to Sanders, Igo tracked the suspect across “harsh terrain down into a creek bed and back up to a trail on the other side,” before eventually catching up to him.
Police detained Draper “without further incident,” Sanders wrote.
A legal search of the truck yielded “Cowlitz Tribe property, a zip loc bag full of meth, an unserialized AR-15, an unserialized handgun, and drug paraphernalia,” according to the sheriff.
Additional charges are expected to be filed in Thurston County Superior Court.
