SNOHOMISH, Wash. - Two robbers who held up a jewelry store Friday, injuring one man, didn't count on the response of other citizens, who wounded one thief and followed the getaway car.

One robber, shot in the arm by a nearby businessman, was captured after the pair abandoned their stolen car and fled on foot. A search continued late Friday for the second man.

Snohomish police are now searching for the second suspect.

The robbers entered Sachi Fine Jewelry & Design shortly before noon, assaulted a male worker with a hammer, stole jewelry and fled, police said.

The injured man, who was not immediately identified, was treated at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle and released Friday night.

Store employee Lisa Kraft was hit by pepper spray.

"I was in the doorway of our back room and I just looked up and I saw a kid running at me," she said. "And he just sprayed my entire face with pepper spray.

A nearby businessman confronted the pair and tried to keep them from fleeing, Police Chief Rob Sofie said. When they refused to stop, the businessman fired three or four shots into their car, wounding one of the men.

Another Snohomish resident followed the fleeing car, which had been stolen in Seattle, Sofie said. The robbers soon abandoned the car and jewelry.

The wounded man, reportedly 18 years old, was treated at an Everett hospital, then booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of first-degree robbery, first-degree assault with a weapon, possession of stolen property and second-degree assault with a weapon.

Sofie said his office was also investigating whether the man who opened fire on the robbers was justified in discharging his gun on a city street. He may have been had he been in fear for his life or the lives of others, Sofie said.

He said that determination would be made after police collect more witness statements but that the man who wielded the gun was cooperating.

Another Snohomish resident followed the fleeing car, which had been stolen in Seattle, Sofie said. The robbers soon abandoned the car and jewelry. The wounded man was treated at an Everett hospital.

Businessman wounds robber

Originally ran here as:
"Manhunt continues following robbery in Snohomish"
by WRITER, Staff Writer
HeraldNet
April 13, 2002

SNOHOMISH - Two robbers assaulted at least one employee of a jewelry store during a robbery Friday morning and one of the robbers was shot in the arm by someone from a nearby business as the pair fled.

Snohomish police caught and arrested one suspect, who was treated for a gunshot wound to the arm and later released from Providence Everett Medical Center. The second suspect got away, despite an intensive manhunt.

One person from the Sachi Fine Jewelry and Design store, 1024 First St., was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. His condition was unknown.

The robbers entered the store about 11:40 a.m., wearing either ski masks or hooded sweatshirts, Snohomish Police Chief Rob Sofie said. They assaulted at least one person, and possibly both people in the store, with a hammer, stole jewelry and fled.

A person from a nearby business confronted the pair and attempted to keep the robbers from fleeing, Sofie said. When the robbers refused to stop, the businessperson fired three or four shots into the vehicle as they fled. One of the robbers was struck in the arm by a bullet.

Another Snohomish resident followed the fleeing Honda, which had been stolen in Seattle, Sofie said.

The robbers abandoned the stolen car and the jewelry in the 800 block of Fourth Street.

Police, assisted by Monroe police and Snohomish County sheriff's K-9 units, set up a containment area at Central Elementary School and around a wooded gully behind it. They captured one suspect and the other escaped.

Businessman wounds robber

Originally ran here as:
"Suspect wounded in jewelry-store robbery"
by Tom Paulson, Staff Reporter
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
April 13, 2002

SNOHOMISH -- The robbery of a downtown jewelry story was partially foiled yesterday by another merchant who fired at the escaping vehicle as the two suspects fled the scene.

"People are feeling real vulnerable right now," Snohomish police Chief Rob Sofie said.

The police quickly caught one suspect, who was shot in the arm by the merchant, when they searched woods near where the suspects had abandoned their car. The black Honda sedan had been reported stolen earlier in the day from the Queen Anne area in Seattle.

The search for the second suspect continued last night.

"We don't think the other one is in the area anymore," Sofie said. He described that suspect as a male in his teens or early 20s, 5 feet 8 inches to 5-foot-11 in height, with a medium build and dark or brown hair.

Witnesses said that just before noon yesterday, Brad Jorgensen, owner of Sachi Fine Jewelry, and employee Lisa Kraft were in the store. The street the store is on has many historic buildings that give it an old Western feel. It is Snohomish's most popular shopping area and known for its antiques dealers

Two young men dressed in dark clothing wearing ski masks entered the jewelry store, witnesses said, and sprayed Kraft with pepper spray. Jorgensen was then struck on the head, reportedly with a hammer. The two men took jewelry and fled the store.

As the suspects jumped into the stolen car, Jorgensen emerged from his shop bloodied and crying out for help, witnesses said. Another merchant, identified by townspeople as the owner of Wyatt's Watches and Antiques a few blocks east, happened to be outside the jewelry store at that moment.

Louis Wein, an antiques dealer whose shop is next door to Wyatt's, said his neighbor has a concealed-weapons permit and always carries a handgun.

"I heard several pops and looked out the window," said Mike Milson, owner of Black Cat Antiques, which is directly across the street from Sachi Fine Jewelry.

"Brad came out covered in blood," Milson said. The owner of Wyatt's "was shooting at the vehicle. He shot a tire out and also shot one of the robbers in the arm."

People ran for cover. The suspects fled in their car north for several blocks, then abandoned their car in a wooded area next to a school.

"Thank God we were on spring break," Sofie said. He said another resident followed the suspects and alerted police when they abandoned the vehicle.

The police cordoned off the area, called in a canine unit, a helicopter and backup from Snohomish County, and searched the area. They found the wounded suspect and some of the jewelry, Sofie said.

The wounded man, reportedly 18, was treated at an Everett hospital, then booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of first-degree robbery, first-degree assault with a weapon, possession of stolen property and second-degree assault with a weapon.

Sofie declined to say if the merchant who shot at the suspects had been detained -- as some townspeople said. The chief did acknowledge that the merchant's handgun and another handgun found in the store were in police custody.

Wein said he hopes his neighbor isn't charged with a crime for trying to stop the suspects. "I think most of the merchants here would be pretty sympathetic," Wein said.

Jorgensen was taken to Harborview Medical Center, where he was treated and released.

P-I reporter Tom Paulson can be reached at 206-448-8318

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