MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Seattle police hunting for suspect after Girl Scouts robbed

Mar 5, 2019, 1:53 PM

Girl Scouts...

Seattle police say this man is a suspect after Girls Scouts were robbed while selling cookies near Northgate. (Seattle Police Department)

(Seattle Police Department)

Someone stole from Girl Scouts while they were selling cookies in North Seattle. Now police are asking for help finding the suspect.

“It’s hard work and sometimes it can be really cold weather as it was last weekend,” said Seattle Police Sgt. Sean Whitcomb. “They were working very hard and selling cookies to customers only to have a terrible human being swoop in and take it. The right thing is for this person to turn themselves in and return the money.”

The unknown person stole a money bin from the table where the Girl Scouts were selling cookies, around 8 p.m. on March 3. The bin contained more than $600 from their efforts.

“We had some Girl Scouts selling cookies as they often do … in this case it was in front of a grocery store,” Whitcomb said. “We have a suspect who clearly knew what he was doing, who took a money bin containing over $600 and took off on foot.”

“This is a very serious theft,” he said. “We have assigned a detective to this case.”

Security video that investigators obtained shows the suspect. The quality is not very high, but police are hoping someone will recognize the suspect and are asking for the public’s help identifying the person. Contact the North Precinct detectives at 206-684-5735 with any information.

It is important to locate the suspect soon, because as the Seattle Police Department puts it: “…before, hypothetically, small, highly-mobile teams of Girl Scouts armed with bows, poison-tipped arrows, and a Terminator-like unflinching dedication to relentlessly pursuing their target do.”

“Any time a crime happens involving children, it is of great concern to us … this is more than just a tip jar at a cafe,” Whitcomb said. “This is $600 being raised by young people to support their work improving our community and developing as human beings. For someone to think that is a target, and then take the money they worked so hard for is pretty reprehensible.”

“We’ve got a number of former Girl Scouts working for SPD, so this guy needs to do the right thing and turn himself in,” he said. “…Bottom line, this person committed a theft, the victims were children, the money was for a non-profit organization … Unfortunately, this suspect thought that taking their money was a good idea. It’s terrible behavior. It’s the worst kind of theft. It’s not something that you can say ‘Oh I didn’t know this is money supporting a charity or the Girl Scouts.’ It’s quite obvious it was.”

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