Soap Lake discusses thefts

Less burglaries in Soap Lake this year

SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake Police offer theft protection tips to citizens.

Police Chief Jim Dorris attended a forum in Ephrata regarding business burglaries by methamphetamine users on Nov. 14. A business he owns in Ephrata was burglarized recently.

Dorris urges citizens to write down the serial numbers of electronics they own, in case they are stolen or lost.

"I've been out there chasing 'Jack and Jill Tweaker,'" Police Chief Jim Dorris said.

He said he stopped countless people in their vehicles and had seen electronics sitting in the back seats of their cars and could do nothing about it.

"Help us help you," Dorris said. "We see a lot of it, we just have no proof."

If there is no serial number provided by the owner there is little to be done about missing property, he said.

"I've got several things floating around in the back seats of some cars," Mayor Wayne Hovde said. Hovde was a victim of theft four times.

In Soap Lake, burglary is down but in Lakeview it is soaring, Dorris said.

To help combat burglaries and thefts, the Soap Lake Police are working on hiring an additional officer. The search is coming to an end for Soap Lake.

"If I had a tail, I'd wag," Dorris said. "We should be back up to full potential by Feb. 1, less some training."

The police department received seven applications for a vacant police officer position, he said. The prospects are positive, he added.