PORT TOWNSEND — Two brothers previously convicted of a string of burglaries in Kitsap County have pleaded guilty to similar crimes in Jefferson County and will both serve 65 months in prison.
The Jefferson and Kitsap counties’ sheriff’s offices arrested three people on the afternoon of April 15 in connection with a string of burglaries that stretched across county lines.
Jefferson County Sheriff Tony Hernandez said the two departments recovered 150 stolen items worth about $50,000 from the home and vehicles of Port Hadlock residents Robert Lucas, 23, and Jason Lucas, 29.
Of the items seized by police, 62 were firearms — including handguns, assault rifles and shotguns.
Admitted guilt
Robert and Jason Lucas both accepted plea bargains Friday in which they admitted guilt to two counts of residential burglary and two counts of theft in Jefferson County.
The brothers had previously pleaded guilty to seven felonies in Kitsap County, according to Jefferson County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Scott Rosekrans.
“They were sentenced to 50 months in prison in Kitsap County,” Rosekrans said.
“The 65 month sentence here will be serve concurrently with that, so they will each get a total of 65 months in prison.”
In April, Hernandez said the two agencies worked together after discovering that a string of burglaries in Jefferson and Kitsap counties could be connected.
On March 5, several firearms, jewelry and collectors’ items were taken from a home in Port Ludlow.
On March 25, a home in Port Hadlock was burglarized and had firearms and jewelry taken.
Kitsap County investigators received information from an informant that the brothers, were preparing to illegally sell firearms at Salisbury Point on the east side of the Hood Canal Bridge, Hernandez said.
“The investigation went fairly quickly,” he said.
“By the afternoon [on the day that Kitsap sheriff called us], we had made the arrest at [Salisbury Point], and by that night, we had sorted through the evidence.”
Hernandez said police found weapons on Jason and Robert Lucas when they were arrested.
“They had some loaded weapons on them at the time of the arrest, but they were taken in without incident,” he said.
Other items found
Later in the day, investigators went to the Lucas home in Port Hadlock.
Investigators searched the home and discovered other stolen items, Hernandez said.
Among the stolen treasures were baseballs signed by Seattle Mariners all-stars Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki, a game bat autographed by former Mariners slugger Edgar Martinez, service medals from the Vietnam War, a bag filled with Native American arrowheads, a collection of hodgepodge jewelry and coins dated in the early 1900s.
Hernandez said of all the goods, he was most excited about recovering the firearms.
“When you recover stolen guns, you take them off the street, where they were likely going to be used for an illegal purpose,” he said.
Among the collection were AK-47 and AR-15 assault rifles, a few Mossberg 12 shotguns and several handguns, including a Ruger Blackhawk, a 9mm Glock and a .357 Magnum.
According to Hernandez, the two brothers were using a door-to-door tree trimming business as a way of scoping out potential targets to burglarize.
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Reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com