WEST SEATTLE CRIME WATCH: Suspected would-be burglar arrested with large knife

3:51 PM: Thanks to the readers who messaged us about this publicly posted security-video clip showing a man trying a door with one hand, sizable knife in the other. Following up, we’ve matched it to an arrest made on Beach Drive early Saturday. The police report says:

I responded to a 911 call for an attempted burglary at 4xxx Beach Drive SW. The Victims … observed via a ring camera, an unknown male suspect, wearing a green jacket with a hood, with light pants, short brown hair and holding a large silver kitchen style knife in his hand. On the camera, the suspect … is seen walking up to the residence, looking into the window at the front door, then trying to open the door. After realizing the door was locked, (he) then walks away on foot in an unknown direction. The residents/victims said they did not recognize (him) and reported no one should have been coming over to their house at that time. Officers contacted (him) several blocks south of the original location. (him) was observed walking down and into another property. Officers found (him) inside of another private building located at 6xxx Beach Drive SW. (He) matched the description and had the knife in his possession. He was taken into custody. … (The suspect) had in his possession, black gloves and a black flashlight.

The 39-year-old suspect is still in the King County Jail. We’re checking with prosecutors to see if he had a bail hearing this afternoon.

7:17 PM: His bail was set at $10,000. No record, so far as we can find.

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: The suspect, Gabriel C. Putnam, is now charged with attempted burglary. Separate update to come.

Chuck June 17, 2019 (4:08 pm)

Fantastic work, SPD!

NoPC June 17, 2019 (7:06 pm)

Can’t wait to hear more—this is incredibly eye-opening.

Chris June 17, 2019 (10:25 pm)

Just not sure how a bail amount could even be set considering the behavior. Have they determined if he remains a threat?

WSB June 17, 2019 (11:03 pm)

Next step is to see if he is charged quickly. Tomorrow I hope to be able to get the probable-cause documents from today’s bail hearing, which sometimes include more information than the initial police report.

McGruff June 18, 2019 (12:46 pm)

I will be very curious to know if the suspect is one of our growing population of transients in the area. Apparently, one or more have set up housekeeping in the Mee-Kwa-Mooks uplands, and the City is in their usual leisurely process of removing them.

WSB June 18, 2019 (1:20 pm)

I just received the probable cause document and it does not have an address for the suspect, noting in the “law enforcement object to release” section, “Suspect identifies as homeless with no known address.”
- Chris June 18, 2019 (2:05 pm)
  
  Wouldn’t surprise me if he set up in the park considering he was obviously traveling southbound on Beach Dr. I definitely plan on showing up to the public session at West Seattle Precinct at 7pm tonight.

Curious Mind June 18, 2019 (4:24 pm)

Scary. Please keep reporting on this one.

Simon Says June 18, 2019 (9:15 pm)

He’ll be back on the streets in a week. You know, “compassion” and all that.

WSB June 18, 2019 (10:10 pm)

Currently still in. Next appearance set for tomorrow afternoon, so we’ll have a followup one way or another.
- Kelsey June 19, 2019 (7:59 am)
  
  Are you able to share the name of the suspect? I did a public records request but it will take a few weeks.

Vince Stanton June 19, 2019 (6:57 am)

Thanks for this information – I saw this video shared on the Ring neighborhood sharing site and it’s pretty alarming. Can anyone point me to the ACTUAL arrest report (should be publicly available). I can’t find it anywhere on government sites, but am keenly interested in knowing this man’s name, face, and the outcome of his arrest.

WSB June 19, 2019 (7:02 am)

Arrest report narratives are not posted publicly for days if ever, and even then, only a select few. SPD recently changed its reporting system and the archives here
http://web1.seattle.gov/police/records/PoliceReports/Default.aspx
have not been updated in more than a month.

The “outcome of his arrest” is what I have researched and reported, requesting the narrative from SPD media relations. The suspect has been in jail since Saturday morning. We publish names when suspects are charged. Charges may be filed today – generally at “second appearance,” either charges are filed or a suspect is released with the possibility of charging later.

There are no “faces” in police reports, by the way. And the only publicly available mugshots are for registered sex offenders and people who have served time in the state prison system, neither of which applies here so far as I have found.
- Alex S. June 19, 2019 (3:26 pm)
  
  I’ve found jail bookings to be a better way to find names of those arrested, especially if it’s within a 24 hour period – even if they are released, you can still find the record. https://ingress.kingcounty.gov/Public/JILS/default.aspx
  - WSB June 19, 2019 (4:19 pm)
    
    Trust me, that’s usually my first stop. However, unless it’s a rare type of charge (burglary, for example, is not), the age is known, etc., it’s not always easy to find, since there is no geographical or other crossreferencing information unless the person is cited for a misdemeanor, or until/if the person is charged with a felony, in which case – if they are still in custody – the case # is usually added. Nothing on this one yet. – TR

WSB June 19, 2019 (4:54 pm)

Update: The suspect, Gabriel C. Putnam, is now charged, and his bail has been doubled to $20,000. I’m downloading the court documents and will publish a separate update shortly. By the way, if anyone knows the person whose security video is linked above, I would appreciate being able to fully feature it but Ring is not embeddable so the best I can do is link to it unless the clip is sent directly by the person who posted it. – TR

Chris June 19, 2019 (10:33 pm)

A few extra notes:Per the detective (Tapacio) he has been charged with Burglary 1 with weapon (a felony that had up to 10 years in prison) but no significant priors. He had an expired Alabama drivers license and no WA listed address. Prosecutors office number is 206-296-9000 but no specific one assigned yet. The more we collective express this person needs to stay behind bars and away from our neighborhood the more likely it will be. If you call, give his name (Gabriel Putnam) or incident number 19.218041. Thanks for all the support!!!