ML man charged in connection with salon burglaries

EPHRATA — A Moses Lake man was charged in connection with a string of burglaries at beauty/hair salons in the Moses Lake area.

Grant County prosecutors charged Kasey Hardy, 33, of Moses Lake, with first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, first-degree trafficking in stolen property, possession of a controlled substance, possession with intent to manufacture/deliver marijuana, second-degree possession of stolen property, possession of a dangerous weapon and third-degree malicious mischief.

About 3:55 p.m. Monday, officers with Moses Lake Police Department were dispatched to a salon in the 600 block of South Pioneer Way to check out a suspicious person. The owner of the salon told police a man, Hardy, and a woman were in the salon attempting to sell a pair of hair shears. Hardy allegedly told the salon owner the shears were worth $350, but said he wanted $40 for them. The salon owner became suspicious as she was told the shears were new, despite evidence they had been used, and because the asking price was so low for the high-dollar item.

Hardy and the woman allegedly got into a Honda and left the scene. The woman reportedly left the salon owner with a call-back number, according to police records.

An MLPD officer knew the woman and the vehicle based on a previous report from Jan. 7, when the MLPD received a call from a hotel in the 400 block of South Melva Lane. The hotel manager told police Hardy broke a window at the hotel. Upon searching Hardy’s room at the hotel, officers located several duffel bags and several “impact” weapons. Police reportedly located several hair products in the room, which were believed to have been stolen during recent burglaries at salons around Moses Lake. Police told the hotel manager they could not touch anything in the room because it was still property that belonged either to the woman or Hardy. The hotel manager advised she would remove both of the suspects from the hotel for breach of contract.

On Monday police contacted the woman on the number she provided the salon on South Pioneer Way and eventually met Hardy and the woman at a laundromat. Hardy allegedly told police he stole the hair shears and some hair product from another man who stole the items from someone else. The woman reportedly admitted there were stolen items from the motel in the trunk of her vehicle and said Hardy put the items in the trunk.

Upon searching Hardy police reportedly found some brass knuckles in a fanny pack he was wearing, according to police records. In addition, officers found a gun in one of Hardy’s pockets. When asked what caliber the gun was, Hardy reportedly said the gun wasn’t his and said he stole the gun from a “kid” who hit him in the face with a shotgun stock. Police found two individually packaged bags of marijuana, $240 in cash and a plastic bag containing white and orange pills on Hardy. The woman told police Hardy sells marijuana.

Upon searching Hardy’s nearby motel room police found a fake $100 in the room. Hardy said he was given the $100 bill by a man named “Lucky” after he sold him some marijuana.

“I told Hardy that I thought he said he didn’t sell weed. Hardy said he didn’t normally, but he did the night prior and got paid in the fake movie money,” wrote a MLPD officer. “Hardy said he sold Lucky $80 worth of marijuana and gave Lucky $20 in change before realizing the $100 was fake.”

Hardy also admitted that a scale found in his motel room was his and said the crystal substance on the scale was from methamphetamine. The white pills located on Hardy were later found to contain hydrocodone. Officers were not able to locate the previously stolen hair products in Hardy’s room, according to police records.