EVERETT — A convicted armed bank robber whose flight from police once shut down Everett’s Boeing plant is facing a handful of criminal charges stemming from allegations that he has been posing as a police officer.
Prosecutors late last week tacked on two more felony charges for Kenneth Moody, who was charged in September with three other felonies.
Police around the county have been investigating Moody for months based on reports that the Everett man was trying to pass himself off as an undercover police officer in an effort to steal from stores. He’s also reportedly attempted to persuade his neighbors not to rat him out to police, explaining that he was “with the Feds and in an investigation.”
Moody now is charged with three counts of first-degree criminal impersonation, attempting to elude police and second-degree identity theft. The 40-year-old also is under investigation for other incidents of impersonating a police officer and may face additional charges, according to court papers.
Moody on Monday pleaded not guilty to the new charges. He was being held on bail in the Snohomish County Jail.
In court papers, prosecutors called him a “career criminal” who has shown to be a danger to the public.
Moody’s first criminal conviction came at the age of 12. He continued to find himself of the wrong side of the law over the years. His most serious conviction came in 2000.
That’s when Moody was sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison for robbing a Lynnwood-area bank.
Moody’s capture was dramatic.
The day after the armed heist police spotted him driving a stolen car. As he attempted to outrun the cops, he crashed his vehicle on the Boeing Freeway. Moody then jumped down a 20-foot embankment, ran across the six lanes of traffic and scaled a metal fence topped with barbed wire to get into the Boeing plant.
Work came to a halt and buildings were emptied as police spent 10 hours searching for Moody in the 98-acree plant.
A Boeing employee reported seeing the man, armed with a gun. Moody was wearing coveralls and a hard hat when found in an attic crawl space area.
Since his release from federal prison, Moody hasn’t been convicted of any other felonies.
Then in June, he came to the attention of police in Snohomish after an employee at Home Depot reported that Moody and an accomplice were reportedly trying to shoplift. When the employee confronted Moody, he allegedly flashed a badge and said he was “undercover” and warned the man not to “blow his cover,” according to court papers.
The employee requested more identification. Moody and the woman reportedly fled the store.
A similar report was taken a day later at the Home Depot in Marysville.
Detectives caught up with Moody in August. He allegedly led officers on a high-speed pursuit and held police at bay for about an hour before finally surrendering at his home.
Police searched his house and located a badge stolen from an Island County sheriff’s deputy. Moody’s girlfriend is related to the sheriff’s deputy, court papers said. Police also discovered a set of handcuffs, a police uniform, a makeshift duty belt outfitted with pepper spray and police-style radios.
Detectives interviewed neighbors who reported seeing Moody with a badge around his neck and wearing a duty belt. They also told police that after they reported a disturbance at Moody’s house in July, he asked if they had called police. He reportedly told them he was a federal agent and advised them not to call 911 anymore. He said he’d get in trouble and they’d “go down” with him, court papers said.
Moody also is accused of attempting to cash a forged check in November. Prosecutors allege he also impersonated a police officer Dec. 8 at the Everett Walmart in an attempt to steal a cell phone.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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