A pair of Pasco burglary suspects are accused of impersonating lawn care workers to cover their crimes.
Pasco police say Jose Manuel Orozco-Miranda broke into a house on the 1700 block of East Lewis Street on Friday while a lookout pretended to be doing yard work out front, according to court documents.
The lookout allegedly brought a "prop" to make it look like he was supposed to be doing the lawn care, said a social media post by police.
He returned a short time later in a different vehicle and was seen on video taking items from the house.
Police say the homeowner realized he had been burglarized when he got home later that day. A flatscreen TV, watch, jacket and other items were stolen.
Police were able to obtain video footage showing the lookout pretending to do lawn care and a man in a maroon shirt going around the side of the house, where a window was later found broken.
At the time the victim didn't recognize either of the men, but after showing the video to family members, they were able to identify Orozco-Miranda as the suspect in the maroon shirt.
The victim said he didn't initially recognize him because he hadn't seen him in years. They were then able to match a tattoo on his arm using photos from social media, according to court documents.
Police then went to arrest him at a home in the 700 block of West Octave Street.
Police believed he was in a detached garage on the property, but he would not come out. After getting a search warrant, they surrounded the garage and gave commands for Orozco-Miranda to surrender, according to the Facebook post.
Police heard a response, but it seemed to be coming from a vent above the garage. Officers eventually used pepper spray, but the man was not fully complying and officers moved in to remove him, they said.
Orozco-Miranda was found dangling from a hole in the attic ceiling with a rope tangled around his legs.
He initially told police he had been at the home because he was hired to do yard work, which the victim refuted.
Miranda-Orozco was booked into the Franklin County jail on suspicion of residential burglary on Monday afternoon. He is being held in lieu of $5,000 bail.
The alleged lookout has not yet been identified, said police. Anyone with information about the suspect or burglary should contact Pasco police via the non-emergency number at 509-628-03333 regarding case 24-044598.
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