Third home invasion in week reported
Published 10:58 pm Thursday, December 11, 2008
MARYSVILLE — On Thursday morning, Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies rushed to a Marysville home to investigate the a report of a third home-invasion robbery in the area in the past week.
A Lynnwood man on Tuesday told deputies two masked men barged into his home. On Dec. 4, a Snohomish widow was held captive for three hours while armed men ransacked her home.
Home invasion robberies, when an intruder forces his way into a home, usually aren’t random, police say.
“The type of home invasion that we had on Dec. 4 is so rare,” Snohomish County sheriff’s spokeswoman Rebecca Hover said.
That’s when two armed men forced their way into the Snohomish home, tied up the widow and kept her in a bathroom while they loaded up her pickup truck and left with most of her valuables. Police this week arrested two men they believe are responsible for the break-in.
In court documents, police said the men staked out the house. They figured the isolated, rural home would be a ripe target.
Officials are still unclear if the robbery Tuesday was random or if the suspects knew the victim. In that case, a 29-year-old Lynnwood man told deputies two men with pistols barged into his home, tied him up with zip ties, zapped him with an electric stun gun and stole a car and other belongings.
Thursday’s home invasion in Marysville is being investigated for potential links to illegal drugs. In that case, a man and a woman called 911 around 6 a.m., Hover said.
They told deputies they’d been tied up in their home in the 7600 block of 19th Avenue NE while two men they knew went through the house, took items and fled.
“Most of the robberies that we respond to and investigate involve some type of connection between the victim and the suspect,” Hover said. “Either the victim and the suspect know each other or the suspect knows the victim through someone else.”
Hover said it’s hard to tell if the sluggish economy or some other reason is a factor in the string of robberies.
Still, there are ways people can protect themselves, she said.
Always keep doors and windows locked, keep valuables, including holiday presents, out of sight and use common sense when someone comes knocking.
“If you don’t know the person at your front door, you don’t have to answer,” Hover said. “If you feel uncomfortable, if they won’t go away, call 911.”
Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437 or jholtz@heraldnet.com
