Police Arrest Suspect of Identity and Auto Theft

Published on November 09, 2023

Media Contact:
Officer Tiffany Trombley
Kirkland Police Department
ttrombley@kirklandwa.gov
425-587-3427

Kirkland, WA – Kirkland Police have arrested a suspect believed to have used stolen identities to fraudulently buy cars who then abandoned one of the vehicles in Kirkland last summer.

On July 12, 2023, Kirkland officers responded to a report of a vehicle in the Juanita area with its engine running and both the driver and a passenger passed out. When officers attempted to make contact, they drove away.

Police located the vehicle at Juanita Bay Park and again attempted to contact the driver, who was suspected of being impaired. The suspect drove the vehicle into a marked patrol vehicle and drove away. The officer was not hurt and did not pursue the suspect further.

The vehicle was found later that day abandoned on Market Street, and the passenger of the vehicle was taken into custody. Investigators discovered the driver had used a stolen identity of a Pierce County resident to buy the vehicle abandoned in Kirkland.

On November 1, Kirkland Pro-Act detectives working with the Snohomish County Violent Offenders Task Force found the man in Bothell and arrested him. He was in another vehicle that was fraudulently purchased using a stolen identity from Federal Way.

Kirkland Police have referred felony charges of identity and auto theft to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.

KPD would like to thank the Snohomish County Violent Offenders Task Force for their assistance in this case.

###