A 19-year-old man is in custody this morning following a carjacking and K9 track early this morning.
At about 1:45 am Wednesday morning a suspect armed with a handgun approached the victim, who had just parked his Honda CRV in the 1600 block of Melrose Avenue, and demanded money. The victim told the suspect that he didn’t have any and the suspect demanded the car. The suspect then took off in the Honda.
Due to the proximity of the northbound I-5 on-ramp, officers began checking the freeway. Officers located the stolen vehicle on the freeway as it was taking the Lakeview Blvd. E. exit. Officers lost sight of the vehicle temporarily, but it was soon relocated, unoccupied at the south end of the exit. Officers immediately set up containment while a K-9 team responded. The suspect was located hiding in the heavy brush and taken into custody. A very realistic-looking Airsoft pistol was also recovered. The suspect admitted to the carjacking and was positively identified by the victim.
The suspect also admitted to leaving a stolen vehicle from Des Moines parked near where he took the Honda. Officers were able to locate that stolen car and recovered it.
The 19-year-old suspect was later booked into the King County Jail for robbery, possession of a stolen vehicle, and possession of stolen property. Detectives will handle the follow up investigation.