Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) reported this afternoon they had 4 suspects in custody after receiving 2 reports of burglaries in progress at Custer area businesses this morning, December 3rd.
According to a press release issued by WCSO,
The first call came in shortly after midnight when the owner of Sunrise Grocery, in the 8000 block of Sunrise Road, reported someone had broken through the door of his closed business. The suspects had stolen a specific brand of cigarettes and made an attempt to access the ATM that was located in the store. The owner observed a late model Dodge Ram pickup truck with a construction rack over the bed fleeing the scene heading southbound on Sunrise Road.
At approximately 1:30am, the owner of Delta Grocery, located in the 1300 block of Birch Bay Lynden Road reported an alarm at his business. Through a live video feed, the owner was able to observe the front door of the business had been pried open. An attempt was made to access the ATM machine in this store as well. Later investigation revealed that the suspect(s) were able to steal several Washington State Lottery scratch tickets.
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While responding to this burglary, a Whatcom County Sheriff’s Deputy observed a Dodge Ram pickup truck matching the description of the first suspect vehicle traveling southbound on Enterprise Road. The vehicle attempted to turn and enter a field but its path was blocked by a gate. With the assistance of the Ferndale Police Department, WCSO deputies contacted and detained the four occupants of the truck.
Inside the truck, in plain view were cartons of the specific brand of cigarettes stolen from the Sunrise Grocery. A large blue pry bar was found in the bed of the truck which appears to have been used in attempts to access the ATM machines at both stores. In addition three of the suspects’ shoe patterns matched those left at the scene of the Sunrise Grocery, and each contained embedded glass from the broken door. As one of the suspects exited the truck, Washington State Lottery tickets fell to the ground that the suspect had in possession. These lottery tickets later matched in sequential number the ones stolen from the Delta Grocery.
All four suspects were arrested for a variety of charges stemming from these two incidents. The charges are: 2 counts of Burglary in the 2nd (for both the Sunrise and Delta stores); Malicious Mischief 2nd ($1000 damage to Delta Grocery) and Malicious Mischief 3rd ($500 damage to Sunrise Grocery); Theft 2nd (Delta Grocery lottery tickets) and Theft 3rd (Sunrise Grocery cigarettes); and Criminal Conspiracy.
The four suspects were identified as:
- Dylan Y. Sielicki, a 38-year-old male from Stanwood
- Alena R. Sharp, a 33-year-old female from Bellingham
- Treven J. Elgersma, a 22-year-old male from Bellingham
- Brent T. Cheney, a 29-year-old male from Bellingham
All 4 suspects were booked into the Whatcom County Jail.
That is great work on the part of both the Whatcom County Sheriff Dept. and the Ferndale Police Dept. Also thank you to My Ferndale News for reporting on this very informational press release from the WCSO.
I’m so happy to hear they caught these deadbeats. The owners of these community stores are like our family and it hurts and angers us to hear that they are in fear.
So many bad things going on in Whatcom County recently. What is wrong with people now days? Something evil must be in the water….