After 90-minute standoff, man reportedly arrested at Bellingham hotel with stolen car
A Skagit County man was reportedly found with a stolen vehicle at a Bellingham hotel and was arrested after a 90-minute standoff with the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office.
Daniel Garcia, 32 of Mount Vernon, was booked into Whatcom County Jail on suspicion of charges including illegal possession of a firearm, possession of a dangerous weapon, possession of a stolen firearm, possession of a stolen vehicle and resisting arrest. Jail records show Garcia is being held in lieu of $25,000 bail.
Deputies on patrol in a hotel parking lot in the 4200 block of Meridian at approximately 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 19, noted a vehicle with no license plates, according to a sheriff’s office Facebook post Thursday evening, April 21. Using the Vehicle Identification Number, deputies learned that the vehicle had been reported stolen to the Swinomish Tribal Police, and learned that Garcia was a suspect in the case.
Deputies viewed the hotel’s security video footage and saw Garcia had driven the stolen vehicle into the parking lot, parked it and got out, according to the post.
Deputies then learned which hotel room Garcia was staying in and began attempting to speak to him and get him to surrender, the post reported. With the help of the Bellingham Police Department, deputies got Garcia to exit the room after approximately 90 minutes.
After a search warrant for the hotel room was granted, deputies found the key to the stolen car and a pair of brass knuckles, according to the post.
A search warrant was also granted for the stolen vehicle, where deputies found a loaded handgun under the driver’s seat that had been reported stolen to the Burlington Police Department, according to the post.
Deputies also found Garcia, who has previously been convicted of a felony, was in violation of a court protection order, as the petitioner of the order was in the hotel room with him, the post states.
