Accused thief sets booby traps in home where he hid stolen goods, Washington cops say
An accused burglar in Washington set booby traps in his home where he kept stolen items, deputies said.
Deputies responded to a burglary report July 26 at a home in Chattaroy, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said in an Aug. 2 news release.
A resident reported items totaling about $20,000 being stolen, including seven motorcycles, two generators, an arc welder, an air compressor and stereo equipment, deputies said.
The next day, a landlord noticed motorcycles, a generator and a welder on the truck he left at his property, which is near the resident’s home, deputies said.
When he asked his tenant about the items, the man said he used the truck to empty his storage unit, deputies said. The landlord showed up at the property another time and saw the items in a buried railcar, so he contacted authorities.
Deputies got a search warrant for the property and the home, and said they found motorcycles and one of the generators in the railcar.
Investigators went into the home through a kitchen door and discovered a gun angled at the front door with a green string trailing from the door to the gun, deputies said.
“If the front door had been opened, it would have tightened the string, causing the gun to fire,” deputies said in the post.
They found another gun in a bathroom facing a window with the same set up, deputies said.
Deputies unarmed the guns and collected them, also finding stereo equipment, an air compressor and the second generator. But the resident was no where to be found.
On Aug. 2, investigators searched a vehicle they believe belonged to the man and found a stolen arc welder, deputies said. The vehicle had also been stolen and was returned to its owner.
All of the other stolen items were returned as well.
The man faces multiple charges, including seven counts of heft of a motor vehicle, second-degree burglary, first-degree theft and third-degree malicious mischief.
The investigation is ongoing.
Chattaroy is about 20 miles north of Spokane.
This story was originally published August 3, 2023 at 7:36 PM with the headline "Accused thief sets booby traps in home where he hid stolen goods, Washington cops say."
