SPOKANE, Wash. – Two suspects are in the Spokane County Jail facing multiple charges following a vehicle theft and nearby home invasion early Tuesday morning, while the owner of the car they are suspected of stealing is left shaken up and without many valuable items.
It was a chaotic morning for Spokane Police. One armed burglary turned into a police pursuit, which then turned into a vehicle theft, and yet another police pursuit.
“It’s not like something you’d expect every day,” Jasmine Yocom, whose car was stolen, said.
The action that led to Jasmine Yocom’s car being stolen started around 1:40 a.m. Tuesday, when Spokane Police received the first of many 911 calls advising four subjects were breaking into an apartment, armed with firearms and wearing ski masks.
Those 911 calls focused on an area on North Nevada Street. Following the home invasion, Yocom’s car was stolen from a nearby house, her grandparent’s home, on East Crown.
“I just got off of work, I was going to go pick up my daughter from my grandparents, they usually watch her at this time of night,” Yocom said. “Because of the snow, I just decided preemptively, one chance, keep my car on and let it roll, keep it warm for my daughter.”
While Yocom went inside her grandparents’ home, she left the keys in the ignition with the car unlocked and running – hoping to preserve the heat on a cold winter morning.
Yet, after getting her daughter out of her crib inside and returning outside, to Yocom’s surprise she saw her car driving away. She recalled only silhouettes, unable to identify the thieves.
Yocom called the theft in to 911 and officers began looking for the vehicle across the city and county. Eventually, SPD officers found the vehicle near the Liberty Park Library. They also found two of the suspected thieves, thanks to the K-9 task team, who were taken into custody.
Tuesday afternoon, 18-year-old Makenzie McFarling and 31-year-old Shane Johnson were arrested and are facing multiple charges including, Burglary 1st Degree, Theft of a Motor Vehicle, and for McFarling – an extra charge for Attempt to Elude a Police Vehicle.
Unfortunately, Yocom is still without many personal items that were allegedly thrown from her car while it was being stolen.
“My daughter’s car seat is completely gone; I don’t know even know where it is. We’re not seeing it on the side of the road anywhere,” Yocom said. “I’m missing cards that I’m going to have to cancel once I find my phone, they threw my phone out the window. They just kind of trashed my car and left.”
McFarling made her first appearance in front of a judge Tuesday afternoon and is being held on a $15,000 bond. Johnson did not appear, but he is being held without bond – he will likely appear in court Wednesday.
