A 26-year-old man from Bellingham has been arrested following the theft of two aluminum bleacher sets valued at $7,000 each from behind North County Christ the King in Lynden.
The theft was reported on Jan. 23 by a church staff member. Investigators discovered that the bleachers had been cut up and sold as scrap at two local metal recycling businesses.
Through surveillance footage and witness accounts, Thomas J. Snipes was identified as the suspect. On Feb. 17, officers from Bellingham, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, and Lynden Police Department made contact with Snipes.
Snipes was booked into Whatcom County Jail on charges of first-degree theft, first-degree malicious mischief, and first-degree trafficking in stolen property. He was also booked on a third-degree theft warrant from the Lynden Municipal Court for an unrelated case.
