A Green Beret was training overseas when someone broke into his house and stole a cache of weapons, military gear and electronics, Puyallup police said.
Detectives are asking for the public’s help in identifying four people believed to be involved in the Nov. 17 burglary at the soldier’s downtown home.
The images were caught on two surveillance cameras when the alleged thieves tried using the soldier’s stolen credit cards.
“This was an extensive burglary,” police Capt. Scott Engle said.
A neighbor noticed the soldier’s garage door was open and called police.
Officers searched the home and noticed several items missing. It took some time to track the soldier down, but they eventually did with the held of Joint Base Lewis-McChord officials.
Police said the thieves likely pulled a vehicle into the soldier’s garage and took their time loading items. They took several guns, a special knife the soldier earned for becoming a Green Beret, body armor, televisions, electronics, tools and credit cards.
They even took the washer and dryer, police said.
The stolen items are worth about $20,000, Engle said.
One of the guns was recovered during a traffic stop in Spanaway. Detectives said they were unable to link the man with the gun to the burglary, though. They’ve also been unsuccessful matching fingerprints found in the house to known criminals in a police database.
That’s why surveillance images captured at a Macy’s and 7/11 convenience store Nov. 17 might be detectives’ best bet in making an arrest. The fact that the cards were used the day of the burglary is important, police said.
“That means there wasn’t a lag time, and it’s likely the people using the credit cards were intimately involved in the burglary,” Engle said.
Two men and two women can be seen in the images.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Puyallup Police Department’s tip line at 253-770-3343.
Stacia Glenn: 253-597-8653 stacia.glenn@thenewstribune.com
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