A man who sparked an overnight police search in the Adna area after he allegedly broke into a residence and stole a firearm on March 6 has been charged in Lewis County Superior Court with six felonies.
Zachary A. Merrin, 28, of Elma, was charged Monday, March 10, with one count each of residential burglary, first-degree malicious mischief, second-degree criminal trespass, theft of a firearm, possessing a stolen firearm and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.
Merrin is accused of breaking into a residence in the 1900 block of Bunker Creek Road and stealing multiple items, including a firearm and ammunition, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office and court documents.
A house sitter at the residence reported seeing a man with a dog run out of the house at about 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 6, according to the sheriff’s office.
Adna residents who posted about the incident on social media said the suspect was wearing a ski mask and left a beer and a machete behind when he left the Bunker Creek Road residence.
He was later reportedly seen trespassing in the backyards of nearby residences.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, the Centralia Police Department and the Washington State Patrol responded with K9 teams and a state patrol aircraft to search for the suspect.
He was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail at 5:45 a.m. on Friday, March 7, after citizens in the 2000 block of Lincoln Creek Road saw him sitting in a hot tub, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
After he was booked into the jail, Merrin allegedly caused significant damage to a holding cell when he “ripped the phone handle off of the cord, ripped the cord out of the wall-mounted unit, smashed the phone scream and damaged the window in the cell door,” according to court documents.
“I do believe there is some evidence here that he is a risk to community safety and also a risk of failure to appear,” Judge Paul Strophy said of Merrin’s case during Merrin’s preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday, March 10.
Strophy set Merrin’s bail at $25,000, below the prosecution’s request for $100,000 bail and above the defense’s request for $10,000 bail.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, March 20.
