Find Posts By Topic

Man Arrested for Series of Cigarette and Liquor Heists In South Seattle

A man captured on surveillance video in a series of cigarette and liquor heists in South Seattle was arrested Monday morning after officers spotted him on the street, dressed in the same outfit he’d worn during his previous break-ins.

In the man’s first burglary on July 2oth, a business owner in the 3200 block of Rainier Avenue South called police around 2 a.m. to report a break-in at his store. Surveillance video captured the suspect filling a large bag with boxes of cigarettes, valued at thousands of dollars. He then fled. Officers searched the area but were unable to locate the suspect at the time.

On October 23rd, a security company called to report a commercial alarm at a business in the 2700 block of Rainier Avenue South. Surveillance video showed the same suspect from the July burglary break-in open a window at the business before rolling a garbage can inside.  Once inside, the suspect filled the bin with liquor products. Again, police were unable to locate the suspect but did have video evidence of the crime. Officers noted the suspect description of a man wearing grey sweat pants and shirt with red shoes, matched the previous burglary reported in the area.

Today, on October 30, officers were conducting an emphasis in the area of the previous burglaries when they saw a man wearing the same outfit of grey sweatpants, sweatshirt and red shoes walking through the neighborhood. Police stopped the man in the 2900 block of Rainier Avenue South and contacted South Precinct detectives who confirmed it was the suspect from the previous break-ins. Officers booked the 52-year-old man into King County Jail for investigation of burglary. Detectives are now working to determine if any other commercial burglaries in the area may be linked to this suspect.