Local Car Prowl and Theft Ring Identified By Police

Skagit County, WA– Skagit County Sheriff’s Deputies have been investigating a recent increased rash of Car Prowls and Thefts throughout Skagit and Snohomish Counties that started in mid November 2015.

One case associated with the vehicle prowls and  thefts was reported to police on 12/14/15. A  local woman reported that her vehicle had been broken into and her wallet was stolen out of her car.  Inside the wallet were several credit cards and her Military Id.  The woman found out that her stolen credit card had been used at the Mount Vernon Wal Mart Store on 12/14/15, 12/15/15, and twice on 12/17/15.

The continued Investigation has led Deputies to a common local “ring leader” who would go and commit vehicle prowls in “nice neighborhoods.”  The suspected ring leader would take other people with him and they would stay in the car and act as a look-out while he went and did the vehicle prowls.  The ring leader would then come back and give the lookout,  gift cards or credit cards and they would both take those stolen cards and purchase items at local retailers and trade some of  those items for drugs.   Investigators interviewed a person of interest in the case on January 17th, 2016 about their connection to the ring leader. The person of interest provided information to the investigators but was not arrested at that time.

On January 20th, 2016, the same person of interest was arrested at his property in Big Lake for Possession of a Stolen Truck. He was booked into the Skagit County Jail  and later Released from Jail.

On January, 23rd,  2016 detectives were able to obtain the surveillance video from Wal Mart and identified the person using the stolen credit cards as the same person of interest in the vehicle prowl and theft cases.

Deputies were able to interview him again and he was taken into custody and he was booked into the Skagit County Jail on a $10,000 bond for 4 counts of Identity Theft,  1 count of Possession of Stolen Property 2nd, 1 Count of Theft 3rd Degree and 4 counts of Forgery.

Deputies wrote on their Probable Cause Affidavit that the subject does not have anywhere to live, does not have a job, does not have family in the area and no place to go if he is released. They wrote they were concerned that he will go back to criminal activity if released again.  He is no longer on the Skagit County Jail Roster and has been released from custody.

Skagit Breaking is not naming either suspect at this time to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigations by Skagit County Law Enforcement Agencies into other Car Prowls and thefts in the area.

The “ring leader” is currently being held in the Skagit County Jail on unrelated charges and is tied to multiple other active car prowl, theft and criminal cases in Skagit County.  He is a transient, with a last known address in Sedro Woolley.