Everett, Washington

From the Everett Herald of December 29, 2006

Boat owner held two suspects in theft at gunpoint

The man spotted two men carting gear from his boat and then kept them cornered until police arrived, court documents say.

It could have been a scene out of the Old West, only there was no gunplay.

A man whose large fish-processing boat is moored in the Snohomish River in Everett was driving by Christmas Day when he noticed two men on the deck of the vessel.

The men carried orange survival suits, each valued at $400, that had been stored on the boat.

The man knew nobody was supposed to be on the boat, deputy prosecutor Chris Dickinson said in court papers Thursday charging one of the men.

The boat owner turned around and went onto the dock to confront the intruders.

He yelled and the two men, who dropped the survival suits and tried to hide.

The owner, who carried a firearm, ordered the men to come out of hiding or they would be shot, Dickinson said.

They got the message. They came out and were held at gunpoint while the owner called police.

Police arrested the pair. One of the men, a 40-year-old from Everett, was charged with first-degree vehicle prowling.

One of the men claimed the two had come to the vessel looking for scrap metal and had a large handcart with them to carry items from the ship.

He denied being there to take anything else, but the boat owner and police found several valuable items had been moved and could also have been carted away, Dickinson said.

The man who was charged has a drug-possession conviction as well as one for second-degree possession of stolen property, Dickinson said. He also has 23 misdemeanor convictions.

The man was being held on $10,000 bail.