Police accuse Kyrgyzstan man of going for the gold and other precious metals

Published 1:18 pm Tuesday, October 13, 2026

EVERETT — Prosecutors in Snohomish County have charged a man from Kyrgyzstan with five felonies after he allegedly stole gold, jewelry and other precious metals from UPS drivers during a monthslong crime spree.

Investigators believe the 21-year-old man used fake driver’s licenses to steal expensive packages as they were being dropped off by delivery drivers at homes across the Puget Sound, according to a 20-page charging document filed on Monday.

Police arrested the man after a string of thefts in Snohomish and King counties between March and June of last year, court documents said.

The first reported theft in Snohomish County occurred in April 2025, when the suspect allegedly waited in a Mill Creek driveway for a package that contained 500 silver coins worth an estimated $15,000, charging documents said.

The man reportedly had the victim’s identifying information and signed for the package from a UPS driver before leaving the area, investigators said.

A month later, he attempted to steal a package of gold bars in Bothell using the intended recipient’s identifying information, but the delivery driver refused to give him the package and the suspect quickly sped away, court documents said.

In early June, just days before his eventual arrest, the suspect is accused of stealing gold bars worth nearly $6,900 from their intended recipients in Edmonds, according to court records. He allegedly claimed to be the victims’ son in order to take the package from the delivery driver.

Mill Creek police officers learned from an UPS corporate investigator that the theft in their area may be connected to a pattern of similar crimes across Western Washington using the same tactics, charging documents said.

The UPS investigator, along with police in King County, were aware of at least 10 other thefts or attempted thefts matching this pattern from Shoreline to Issaquah, court documents said. Among the items stolen were a luxury watch and rifle ammunition, but the main target appeared to be gold and platinum bars from Costco.

Investigators alleged the man stole or attempted to steal approximately $380,000 worth of goods using this method, charging documents said.

Homeland Security Investigators helped detectives from the Mill Creek Police Department link the suspect to a home in Kirkland, court documents said. The man reportedly has no Washington or U.S. driver’s license and allegedly had a student visa to be in the country, according to charging documents.

The man was arrested in early June 2025 while attempting to intercept another package in Kirkland, court documents said.

Investigators showed the man screenshots from security videos from UPS trucks involved in many of the thefts and he reportedly identified himself as the person seen in the images, court records said.

He told police he found a job through the messaging app Telegram, which gave him instructions on when and where to intercept packages, court documents said.

The suspect said he would then mail the packages to someone in Minnesota or Florida, but investigators found multiple pawn slips inside his vehicle indicating he’d recently pawned some of the gold bars, according to charging documents.

Investigators searched the man’s phone where they allegedly found more than 20 photos of fake driver’s licenses with the suspect’s photo and someone else identifying information, court records said. Law enforcement also found messages and pictures of gold bars that matched up with the times of multiple thefts.

The man said he did not know what he was doing was illegal and reportedly agreed to cooperate with a national criminal investigation involving Homeland Security, court documents said.

The man is facing two counts of first-degree identity theft, two counts of first-degree theft exceeding $5,000 and one count of second-degree identity theft, according to court records. The charges are exclusively for the alleged incidents in Snohomish County.

Prosecutors are requesting bail be set at $50,000, charging papers said.

The suspect is scheduled to be arraigned on Oct. 26, according to online court records.

Ian Davis-Leonard: 425-339-3097; ian.davis-leonard@heraldnet.com