Deputies with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department’s Community Support Team and officers in the Department of Corrections Southwest Community Response Unit arrested Washington’s Most Wanted fugitive Robert James in Parkland Tuesday, Oct. 14. He is charged with Robbery in the 1st degree for an armed home invasion in Spanaway on March 13, 2014.
“The suspect in this case is extremely dangerous,” said Det. Ed Troyer of the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department. “In this particular case he was armed when they did a residential robbery. He and his partners went in, pointed guns at the home occupants, took their TV, jewelry, anything of value before fleeing.”
Detectives were able to identity James through a fingerprint found on a bottle of alcohol that was brought to the victim’s apartment by the suspects.
"The defendant ran, the defendant hid, but thanks to Washington's Most Wanted and a bottle of vodka, he was caught," said Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist. "Home invasion robberies are terrible crimes – the defendant will be aggressively prosecuted and off our streets for decades."
James was featured on Aug. 8 on WMW as a Crime Stoppers of TacomaPierce County case. Deputies say he had cut his hair very short while hiding from authorities. James is the 564th WMW fugitive caught.