La Conner man’s crime spree ends after flinging stolen sausages at Bellingham police
A 29-year-old La Conner man’s crime spree ended Monday after he allegedly threw stolen sausages at police officers while fleeing from them.
Anthony Michael Bryant was arrested Nov. 25 on suspicion of second-degree burglary, two counts of second-degree malicious mischief, third-degree theft, theft of a motor vehicle, possession of an ID belonging to another and resisting arrest.
Bryant’s bail was set at $10,000 at his first appearance in Whatcom County Superior Court Monday, according to Whatcom County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Gordon Jenkins. Bryant’s arraignment is scheduled for Dec. 6.
Around 10:45 p.m. on Nov. 24, Bellingham police responded to the Fred Meyer on Lakeway Drive for the report of a man throwing garbage around. Before officers arrived, the man, later identified as Bryant, walked away, according to Bellingham Police Lt. Claudia Murphy.
Officers saw the glass door to the gas station booth was shattered, an alarm was sounding and a number of items were “strewn about,” Murphy said. An officer saw Bryant walking toward Whole Foods.
When Bryant saw the officer, he “began throwing stolen sausages from the Fred Meyer gas station at his patrol car,” Murphy said.
The officer recognized Bryant, who was a suspect in an alleged vehicle theft earlier that day, and told him he was under arrest. Bryant ran away, but was caught a short while later after he fell in the parking lot, Murphy said.
Officers found a metal refrigerator door had been torn off inside the gas station booth. Several bottles of oil and packages of sausages were also thrown around the parking lot, she said.
It’s estimated that Bryant caused around $1,400 in damage to the gas station booth, and stole about $95 worth of oil and sausages, Murphy said.
About 10 minutes before the gas station incident, police responded to Target to take a vehicle theft report from an employee. The employee told police they drove a friend’s vehicle to work and parked on the north side of the parking lot before they went to work. When their shift was done, they discovered the car was gone, Murphy said.
Surveillance footage showed a man matching Bryant’s description get in the car and drive away, Murphy said. He had previously been escorted out by mall security earlier in the night, Murphy said.
Officers elsewhere in the city remembered seeing Bryant earlier in the 2600 block of Meridian Street near a car, Murphy said. Officers went back to the area and found the stolen car, she said. The car was now inoperable and several components were damaged, Murphy said.
Officers also found two U.S. passports belonging to two unrelated people. It was later determined the passports belonged to two people who had their cars broken into on Nov. 11 and Nov. 24, Murphy said.
Court records show Bryant was also charged in Skagit County Superior Court in mid-October first-degree malicious mischief for allegedly damaging and spray-painting a Mount Vernon city vehicle, court records show. Bryant also allegedly placed several mailboxes on other city vehicles, and had broken other items and thrown trash on the ground nearby, the court records state.
When found by a police officer, Bryant was wearing a City of Mount Vernon jacket. Several business cards and items belonging to Mount Vernon employees were also found in Bryant’s pockets, according to court records. It was later determined that at least three city cars had been damaged, records state. Surveillance footage captured Bryant damaging the vehicles, the records show.
Bryant’s jury trial for his Skagit case is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 6, 2020.
