KOMO(GIG HARBOR, Wash.) — A Washington state woman said she was determined to catch the “creeps” who recently burglarized her home and made off with electronics, jewelry, credit cards and even her family letters.
Instead of panicking after the robbery, Mavi McFarlane, 70, said she chose to investigate the crime herself and she got a big tip when she noticed that the thieves had used her credit card at local gas stations, including one right near her home in Gig Harbor.
“I was very upset. I felt sick to my stomach,” McFarlane told ABC affiliate KOMO on Wednesday. “I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to catch these creeps.'”
“I’m going to get all the information in a package, and I’m going to give it to the police so they can go do their job,” she added.
McFarlane said she immediately notified the gas station near her home, showing workers surveillance pictures of the suspects, with the hope that they might show up again — and they did.
The suspects returned to the Gig Harbor gas station with another one of McFarlane’s credit cards, and the clerk, already tipped off by the victim, recognized the suspects, pressed the store’s panic button and hid one of the suspect’s cell phones to stall them until police could arrive.
Luckily, the police showed up soon and arrested the two suspects, according to KOMO. Police said they found a variety of stolen credit cards, a gun, jewelry and illegal drugs all tucked away in the suspects’ vehicle.
The 32-year-old and 27-year-old suspects were being held at the Pierce County Jail in eastern Washington on burglary charges. It wasn’t clear yet if either had hired a lawyer.
As for the victim, she said she’s just happy that she was able to stop the alleged thieves.
“It felt so good to get these people off the streets,” McFarlane said. “They had stolen stuff in the car then that wasn’t mine, but other people that they had robbed.”
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