KENT, Wash. — A burglary suspect was arrested on St. Patrick’s Day after trying to swim away from Kent police in near-freezing Lake Meridian.
According to Kent PD, the man was first spotted by “observant homeowners” breaking into a garage, filling up a shopping cart with $1,200 worth of tools and other items, and heading out down the street.
Police arrived to find the shopping cart abandoned. As they interviewed the garage-theft victim, a call came in from a neighbor, who said that a man was actively trying to steal his boat.
“The vessel was tied up to their private dock with those fancy nautical knots,” detailed the report from Kent police, “We later pieced together that the suspect, a 31-year-old Kent man, had dropped the cart presumably when he noticed many Officers and neighbors in the area, and King County SO Guardian hovering above. Attempting his best Jack Sparrow moment, he decided to try and steal a non-motorized boat, but the rope knots confounded him. As he tried to release the 2nd knot from the cleats, the homeowners came out to yell at him and take photos.”
Kent police say the man then threw himself into the 40-degree lake and swam away. He got out on another dock, and police followed the 911 calls from neighbors as he jumped over fences and tried to get away. Finally, he was spotted on the street, “very wet, very cold, and missing his shirt.”
He was arrested and booked for second-degree burglary and attempted theft.
©2025 Cox Media Group
