Bellevue police put another dent in the very active gym locker theft business. Detectives have arrested two busy thieves 50-year-old Troy Mitchell and 49-year-old Sean Savage, and there is a warrant for 50-year-old Sidney Williams who is currently in Wisconsin. The three are responsible for dozens of locker break-ins where they steal cash and credit cards, then rack up significant charges. In just these cases alone, the fraudulent purchases amount to over $16,000.
Mitchell, considered the ring leader, was arrested at a rental car return counter as he arrived back in Seattle from Atlanta on August 26th. Detectives had tracked Mitchell as he traveled around the country and checked into gyms. There are several corresponding locker theft reports from those locations, including Colorado and Minnesota. In Seattle, he was booked into jail on nine counts of theft, identity theft and conspiracy to commit identity theft.
After Mitchell’s arrest, detectives found two fake drivers licenses out of Nevada and Illinois in his wallet. Both pieces of identification have Mitchell’s photo and two different aliases listed. They also recovered five possibly counterfeit debit cards and 11 gift cards of various amounts.
Counterfeit ID 
Counterfeit ID
A second suspect, 49-year-old Sean Savage, was arrested August 28th after he was identified as a member of this theft ring. Detectives recovered clothing, including the pink shirt seen in the surveillance photo where Savage is accused of using stolen credit cards.
Detectives also filed charges against 50-year-old Sydney Williams for his part in this gym locker theft ring. Williams is currently in Wisconsin, and there is a warrant for his arrest.
Gym locker thefts have been rampant across the country lately. There have been more than 80 reported cases in Bellevue since the beginning of the year. Detectives busted another locker theft ring earlier this month, and those two suspects are still behind bars.
Police credit both 24-Hour Fitness and LA Fitness for cooperating with the investigation. Following the first case, LA Fitness installed video cameras in its two Bellevue locations, which is a significant help in identifying suspects.
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