Asleep at the wheel in Gig Harbor, with a stolen trailer full of loot

A man who fell asleep at the wheel of a pickup truck in Olympic Village was found to be towing a stolen trailer full of lumber and mountain bikes, Gig Harbor police reported.

An officer went to check on the man after passersby reported him slumped over the wheel of a rented U-Haul pickup in the parking lot of the shopping center, 5500 Olympic Dr. about 11 p.m. on August 24. The man had an empty water pipe in his lap, the officer said.

When awakened, police said, the man gave a confusing account of how he had rented the Ford F-150 pickup and its trailer. When officers checked, they found that the pickup was nine days overdue from a Tacoma Home Depot store and the trailer was missing from the lot at a Gig Harbor Home Depot. Inside the trailer, officers found 48 2x6 planks marked as for delivery to a construction site, and four new mountain bicycles.

The 48-year-old Tacoma man was arrested. Due to COVID restrictions, he could not be booked, but was cited for possession of stolen property and released. The trailer and its contents were seized as evidence.

Shoplifter couple hit store, flee in Mercedes

A pair of shoplifters filled two shopping carts with $750 worth of Nike shoes and athletic clothing at Kohl’s Department Store, 4929 Point Fosdick Drive on Aug. 21 and then left without paying, Gig Harbor police reported.

The couple left in a black Mercedes. The pair and their car match the description of suspects in a similar incident at a Kohl’s store in Lacey, officers said. A license number was obtained from video surveillance, and the car was traced to a Tacoma address. The investigation is continuing.

This story was originally published September 1, 2021 at 5:00 AM.