Two Atchison men arrested after meth-related police contact on U.S.-59

A late-night patrol observation in the 400 block of U.S.-59 led Atchison police to meth-related evidence and put two local men in jail, including one defendant already facing three bench warrants.

Police said the contact began shortly after 2:30 a.m. in a parking lot area and developed into a drug investigation. The men were identified as Alan M. Kendrick, 36, and Stephen Oswalt, 62, both of Atchison.

Kendrick was booked on interference with law enforcement by falsely reporting a crime, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Oswalt was booked on possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. The Atchison County sheriff’s inmate roster lists the narcotics offense as possession of opiate, opium, narcotic or certain stimulant.

The jail roster shows Kendrick was booked at 4:32 a.m. on May 14, 2026, under booking number IN202600224, with three bench warrants issued by Atchison County, Kansas, and a $10,000 bond. Oswalt was booked at 3:57 a.m. the same day under booking number IN202600223 with a $0 bond. Both men remained listed as current bookings when the roster was checked, indicating the case was still moving through the jail and court process.

The arrest fits a pattern that local officers and residents recognize along major corridors such as U.S.-59, where patrol work often overlaps with traffic stops, warrant checks and drug contacts. In a community the size of Atchison, those late-night encounters can quickly become more than routine enforcement when officers find paraphernalia, suspected narcotics or false statements tied to the stop.

The broader meth picture in Kansas gives the arrest added weight. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation reported five clandestine laboratory incidents statewide in calendar year 2025, up from four in 2024. Kansas meth reporting traces to the 2005 Sheriff Matt Samuels Act, which required annual KBI trend reports, and the agency warns that meth conversion labs can bring hazardous chemicals, toxic fumes, fire, explosion and hazardous-waste risks.

For Atchison County, the case is another reminder that street-level meth activity can surface in ordinary-looking patrol contacts, not just in major raids or long investigations. Officers say those stops matter because they can interrupt drug use, uncover outstanding warrants and remove unsafe materials from the road before they spread farther into the neighborhood.