More than $100K in police gear gets stolen in Federal Way

Employee for tactical equipment company had his truck burglarized at a hotel.

By Joshua Solorzano • August 3, 2023 9:22 am
Photos of the Curtis Blue Line truck, which was broken into, and photos of the stolen items. Stolen items in photo include scuba diving equipment, two different helmets, and a scuba diving mask. (Photos courtesy of Federal Way Police Department)
Photos of the Curtis Blue Line truck, which was broken into, and photos of the stolen items. Stolen items in photo include scuba diving equipment, two different helmets, and a scuba diving mask. (Photos courtesy of Federal Way Police Department)

More than $100,000 worth of law enforcement equipment is in the hands of a burglar.

On July 21, an employee from Curtis Blue Line reported about $80,000 worth of law enforcement equipment was stolen from his work truck, according to a police report from the Federal Way Police Department.

After a complete list was made of all the stolen equipment, the actual value of the equipment was $119,500, according to police.

The police report states the Curtis Blue Line employee was driving from Utah to deliver the law enforcement equipment to Washington. At about 10 p.m. July 20, the employee stopped at the Courtyard by Marriott in Federal Way to sleep for the night. At about 8 a.m. July 21, he found his truck bed’s hard shell rear hatch window open and the equipment missing. Upon discovering the missing equipment, the employee called Curtis Blue Line and 911.

The stolen equipment consisted of a thermal tactical surveillance kit worth $45,000; a long-range acoustics device worth $15,000,; three gas masks worth $4,000; a scuba kit worth $20,000; ten police radios not yet programmed for police communications worth $30,000; and three ballistics helmets and three plastic helmets worth $5,500. The total cost of the stolen equipment was $119,500.

The employee was driving a Chevy Silverado owned by Curtis Blue Line, which had a Utah License plate. The truck had no markings indicating it contained law enforcement equipment, and its hard shell windows were tinted, not allowing anyone to see inside.

According to the police report, the truck cover had a lock that seemed untampered. The report states the truck had a remote control operated custom-fitted key-lock, which locks when the vehicle is turned off.

Police checked the area for cameras, but none were located. Additionally, the hotel had no cameras, and nearby Safe City cameras did not have an angle of the parking lot, according to police. A King County Automated Fingerprint Identification System processing technician responded to the scene to process the vehicle.

As of Aug. 1, there are no leads or suspects, according to public records.