Acting talent earns shoplifter robbery charge

SILVERDALE -- A 27-year-old Hansville man's talent for stagecraft earned him a violent felony charge Sunday while trying to shoplift children's DVDs.

Kitsap County sheriff's deputies were called to the Kitsap Mall Sears after security guards called to report a shoplifting suspect threatened to stab one of them, according to reports.

The security guard said he had brought the suspect to the office, but the suspect turned and ran. When the security guard caught up to him, the suspect threatened to stab him and reached into his back pocket, reports said.

Deputies tracked down the man hiding in another store and found nine children's movie DVDs and five Blu-ray discs in his bag, stolen from Sears. Officers also found five Wii video games, but no knife.

The suspect told deputies that the DVDs were for his child's birthday. He has two children, ages six and eight, and has not been able to find a job.

When asked, the suspect said he didn't have a knife. The deputy asked why the store employee thought he had one.

"I'm a good actor," the suspect said.

Because he used the threat of violence during the theft, the man was booked into the Kitsap County jail for investigation of first-degree robbery.

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