|
Residents in a downtown Seattle apartment building called
police on Monday evening to report hearing what sounded like a
person "destroying washing machines" with a pry bar in a laundry
room, the Seattle Police Department said in a statement.
The suspect, who police said had dozens of $1 bills and $22.65
in change on him, likely taken from vending and washing
machines, hid behind the appliances as residents came in to do
laundry and then moved a vending machine to block the entrance
to the room.
He then burrowed out of the communal laundry room through a wall
and into an adjacent storage area. Following the trail, police
entered the storage room but found only blood and broken glass
and a small opening that led to air ducts, the statement said.
"Officers made their way to the basement, where they could hear
someone struggling inside the duct work. The burglar told police
he was stuck, and could not move because of the pain — and that
he needed something to drink."
It took Seattle firefighters 20 minutes to free the man, who
suffered cuts to his hands and face. He was taken into custody,
was being treated at a hospital and will be booked on felony
burglary and drug possession charges.
The man eventually admitted to drug use, telling police he had
never been so high.
When police asked why he tunneled through the wall, they said he
replied: "To complete my mission."
(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by Cynthia
Johnston and Peter Cooney)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
|
