BELLEVUE, Wash. – Investigators with the Bellevue Police Department, along with Detectives from the Issaquah, Sammamish, Redmond and Kirkland Police Departments, joined forces to combat an organized group suspected of breaking into vehicles at numerous area parks and fitness centers. Investigators have made 11 arrests to date, and expect to make several additional arrests over the coming weeks. The suspects, working in coordinated teams of two to three, are accused of watching victims hide purses and wallets after parking in a park where walking trails are located, wait for the victim to leave, and then smash the window and take the hidden items. The suspects then use the victim’s stolen credit cards to purchase items at area stores. To date, Investigators have linked the suspects to over $100,000 worth of loss in Bellevue alone.
The suspects that have been arrested are:
- Treshaun Sinclair, 20
- Leila Haji, 19
- Ahjanie Thompson, 24 (arrested twice)
- Deionte Hunter, 20
- Tevona Hollis, 20
- Dwight Miles Jr., 24
- Tatiana Dickey, 18
- Leneeka Warren, 19
- A 20 year-old female that has not yet been charged
- A 20 year-old male that has not yet been charged
- A 19 year-old female that has not yet been charged
Investigators have also linked many of these suspects to the individuals charged in the death of Moises Radcliffe, the son of a Seattle Police Officer, killed in Sammamish in January of this year during an attempted car prowl at Beaver Lake Park.
In addition to the arrests, investigators have recovered two handguns that may be linked to shootings in South Seattle and King County earlier this year. The guns are currently being analyzed to see they can be linked to additional crimes. Police have also seized three vehicles that were used in the commission of the felony crimes or were obtained through money laundering. The combined efforts of higher visibility in the parks by uniformed officers and public education, combined with the intelligence and arrests by detectives working the operation, have resulted in our park prowls dropping significantly.
Police urge residents to prevent these types of crimes by never leaving valuables in their vehicles, and ask people to LOCK, TAKE, LEAVE – lock your car, take your valuables with you, or leave valuable items at home.
Bellevue Beat Blog 