About 3 a.m. Thursday, on Percival Landing's E dock, someone was attempting to board and steal a boat.
Before the suspect could get on board, the boat's owners, who were armed with a gun, confronted the man. When police arrived, the owners had the man in custody, ready to be handed off to police.
According to a probable cause report to Thurston County Superior Court, the husband-and-wife couple who live aboard their 46-foot Carver pleasure boat, were awakened by what sounded like debris scrapping up against the hull. Looking outside, the wife noticed a man in an orange vest outside of their boat and tried to ask what he was doing.
The husband then got their gun, a Walther PPK .380 handgun, the report said, and headed onto the dock to see what was happening. The owner noticed that his 10-foot inflatable dinghy had been removed from its mount, taken down the dock and tied off, according to the report. The man brought the dinghy back and tied it to his boat.
A few moments later, the man in the orange vest was back, asking if he could board the couple's boat because he left his wallet on its roof, the report said.
The couple said they warned the man multiple times not to come aboard and told him they were armed The probable cause statement said they then called the police for help.
The couple said the man was undeterred by the presence of the pistol, and, according to the report, thought it was only a flare gun. To show that it was not, the husband fired a round into the air out over the water, to which the suspect replied, "that isn't a flare gun," the report said.
Olympia Police arrived at Percival landing's E dock at around 3:30 a.m. to arrest the man in the orange vest and investigate the incident. According to probable cause statements, the man's wallet was found on the roof of the boat, indicating he had been on board at some point that night.
According to Olympia Police Officer Brian Riley, the 31-year-old thief was compliant when police arrived and arrested him. Police charged him with attempted auto theft and residential burglary, Riley said.
The incident is similar to recent news stories from around the state where an alleged criminal has been confronted by a property owner with a gun.
In early June a man shot and killed an 18-year-old Arlington high school student who was allegedly trying to break into the man's home.
Later in June, a man shot and killed a person who was allegedly stealing their catalytic converter.
The two boat owners handled the situation well, Riley said, and no one was injured during the incident.
The 31-year-old man has appeared in court and was released on personal recognizance under the condition he does not violate any criminal laws, leave the state or come into possession of any dangerous weapons or firearms.
