PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A dead battery in a getaway car led to the arrest of two suspected thieves in Clackamas County, deputies said.
Deputies were called to the Clackamas Promenade at about 3:30 p.m. on Monday after a theft at the Kohl’s department store.
Two men were reported to be involved: one of whom ran from the store with an armful of stolen merchandise while the other waited next to a getaway car, according to the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Department.
But the suspects hit a snag when their car refused to start. The pair reportedly asked other people in the parking lot to jump their dead battery but deputies arrived before they could get it going.
Deputies arrested Raymond Allen Stavig, 41, of Molalla and Derek Richard Benjamin Shurts, 27, of Clackamas. Inside the car, deputies found bags of clothing from other stores, laptops, phones, stolen credit cards, Oregon ID cards, a magnetic card reader/writer, counterfeit cash and drugs, among other things.
Shurts told deputies Stavig offered him $1,000 as deputies were arriving if he would take the blame for everything — which he declined, according to the sheriff’s office.
Stavig later told deputies all the items in his car belonged to his wife, authorities said. Deputies also found the owner of one of the laptops was also the owner of the getaway car, which had been stolen in Portland.
Investigators said the information on the stolen credit cards helped them identify nine victims of identity theft.
Stavig was arrested on charges of identity theft, theft, possession of methamphetamine and a warrant for aggravated ID theft. He was booked at the Clackamas County Jail.
Shurts was arrested on charges of possession of a forged instrument, theft and a warrant for heroin possession.
Anyone with tips about possible crimes committed by the pair is asked to contact the CCSO tip line at 503.723.4949 or send an email to https://www.clackamas.us/sheriff/tip and reference case # 20-025559.