Yakima man accused of stealing jewelry during real-estate open houses - Yakima Herald-Republic
YAKIMA, Wash. -- A 42-year-old Yakima man is accused of stealing jewelry from several real estate open houses.
Yakima police began their investigation Sept. 26, following a report of a theft of medication and $2,650 worth of rings and other jewelry from a home on South 68th Avenue. The homeowner said her real estate agent conducted an open house two days earlier and believed that a couple who went through the open house was responsible for the thefts, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Representatives of the real estate agency that hosted the open house said there had been a string of thefts at open houses they were conducting, and logs of potential buyers showed the same man and woman going to each one where a theft had occurred, the affidavit said.
One of the real estate agents used social media to find out that one of the suspects had sold jewelry at a jewelry store and a coin shop and recovered the items, according to the affidavit.
Surveillance video from the jewelry store shows the man and woman at the store, where the woman sold several items, while records from the coin shop showed the man had sold items there as well.
He was arrested on suspicion of second-degree theft and first-degree trafficking in stolen property. During a preliminary appearance Tuesday, the man was released pending trial by Yakima County Superior Court judge Kevin Naught. Police spokesman Mike Bastinelli said the woman has not been taken into custody.
