Alleged hungry burglar nabbed in spree

By Michael Ko
Seattle Times staff reporter

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

Instead, the hungry burglar gobbled a box of Creamsicles, six shrimp kabobs, about a dozen mini corndogs, half a large package of Costco lunch meats, two fruit drinks, a glass of milk, a dozen clumps of frozen cookie dough and several large handfuls of M&Ms.

Sanchez figures he wolfed down everything in 15 minutes.

"We believe he actually heated up some of that food in the microwave," said Sanchez, 44, who was sleeping while the man ate.

The family dog's constant barking finally awakened her and her husband, just in time for them to hear somebody running out the sliding glass door.

The Sanchez family was the last victim of an unusual burglary spree that ended later Sunday when Shoreline police arrested a man in his late 20s. The man, who is in custody at the King County Jail, is not being named because he hasn't been charged.

Investigators believe that starting Aug. 3, the man broke into as many as 11 homes in Shoreline and Lake Forest Park, usually late at night and often when the homeowners were sleeping. And while he occasionally snatched fistfuls of cash, he usually had only one thing on his mind: food.

During one break-in, the man even thawed some frozen steaks, fried them and ate them on the sofa while watching television, said King County sheriff's Detective Christina Bartlett. In that case, the house was unoccupied at first. The homeowners returned to confront the man, who ran away.

In fact, the man was confronted on several occasions, even getting into a fight at one house. But he ran away each time.

The brazen burglaries ended about 5:30 p.m. Sunday at Berean Bible Church, on the 2300 block of North 185th Street in Shoreline. Churchgoers noticed a stranger rifling through a woman's purse. They held him down until police arrived.

The man had food-related evidence in his car that tied him to the other crimes, Bartlett said. Police don't have a clear idea of his motive yet, but are considering whether the man might have an eating disorder or was just being bold, she said.
 
Sanchez believes the intruder first ate the Creamsicles, which were in a outdoor freezer. Then he entered through the kitchen window, which had been cracked open slightly before the family went to sleep.

When she surveyed the kitchen after the man had gone, drawers and cabinets had been ransacked and the refrigerator and freezer doors were flung wide open.

Food wrappers and the contents of her purse were scattered on the floor.

But she found her credit cards, as well as a $50 gift certificate that was a birthday present for her husband. Other than food, the only things missing were a small amount of cash from her purse and a jar of coins.

"I have four kids, and all of them could have been exposed to who knows what," Sanchez said. "People have endured a lot worse in these kind of situations, and we're just really fortunate he was really hungry."

Michael Ko: 206-515-5653 or mko@seattletimes.com