Burglars furnish vacant house with stolen loot

A man and a woman moved into a temporarily vacant house on South Whidbey, changed the front-door lock and furnished it with stolen items, including a cow-hide rug, according to court documents.

Police found them inside the house and arrested them Dec. 8. They are now both in jail.

Prosecutors charged James McManus, 45, in Island County Superior Court Dec. 12 with residential burglary, possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of stolen property in the second degree and possession of meth.

Jessica M. Myron, 44, was charged the same day with residential burglary, possession of a stolen vehicle, possession of stolen property and possession of heroin.

McManus and Myron are identified as transients in court documents. McManus is being held on $50,000 bail and Myron’s bail is $15,000.

According to the police report, the owner of the house near Langley returned and noticed cardboard was covering the windows, so she called the police.

A deputy with the Island County Sheriff’s Office and a Langley police officer found that the from door locks had been changed.

The police entered through the back door and located McManus and Myron in a bedroom. The suspects indicated they had been living at the house for a couple of weeks, the report indicates.

The intruders had partially furnished the house, which had been nearly empty. A large amount of stolen items were found, including jewelry and iPads.

The homeowner found that pipes had been cut, leading to water damage.

The officers found a stolen truck parked inside the garage. They contacted the owner in Snohomish County and he reported the truck had been taken on the same night a large number of items were stolen from his home.

The officers found that most of the items found in the Langley house matched those taken in the Snohomish County burglary, the report states.

The officers also found suspected meth and heroin in the bedroom.

The report indicated that Myron had been driving around South Whidbey in the stolen truck when she came across the house and decided to move in.

Written inside a notebook found in the bedroom was a alleged to-do list when stated, “locks for doors, bolt cutters, lock for garage, make lease, look up fake landlord,” the report states.