Former Snohomish County deputy Jeremie Zeller decided if you can’t beat the criminals, join them. Prosecutors are going to make an exception and throw the book at him for “organized retail theft.” The state of Washington is really a state of anarchy.
Socialist deputy shared the wealth
Jeremie Zeller, a 46-year-old resident of Lake Stevens, had a busy schedule. While off duty as a Snohomish County deputy, he was supposed to be providing private security at the Home Depot in south Everett.
Last summer, “over the course of several weeks,” he switched sides and started stealing. He thought he was safe because he watched his limit and only stole amounts which the law allows.
The way his system worked, the former deputy would collect “various items from around the store” then place them up front. He told his co-workers “he would pay for them before he left.” Who would question security? He didn’t pay.
NEW: A Snohomish County sheriff's deputy was charged with felony theft Wednesday, accused of repeatedly shoplifting from an Everett-area Home Depot where he worked as security. The deputy, Jeremie Zeller, resigned in October. https://t.co/My3RrVfJr5
— Jake Goldstein-Street (@GoldsteinStreet) January 5, 2023
According to prosecutors, “surveillance video shows him walking out of the store.” He didn’t do it just once. That would have been legal. He did it “on eight occasions.” That makes it “organized.”
The store employees didn’t realize their security guard was really a deputy.
They called police to have someone look at the surveillance video and a fellow officer recognized the suspect instantly. The total cost of the merchandise was around $1,000 which makes it a Class B felony.
Magic number is 750
Shoplifting, the deputy was well aware, isn’t prosecuted in amounts less than $750. Stealing for personal use isn’t even worth a ticket. Once you hit the magic number, things change.
According to detective Brad Reorda, who investigates retail theft for Lynnwood Police, “currently, anything over $750 is considered Theft 2. Nowadays, with the price of things, it does not take a lot to get to that threshold.”
When people think of “organized” retail theft, they think of “groups of people stealing large amounts of merchandise and selling it online or on the black market overseas.” To addicts and the homeless, “it’s their job. It’s how they make a living.”
“Jeremie Zeller, 46, 👮🏻♀️ of Lake Stevens was moonlighting as a security guard at the store at the time.”
🙄 Wonder what he does on duty
Moonlighting Snohomish County deputy resigns after being charged with organized retail theft https://t.co/lHQpcy7epl via @KING5Seattle
— Denise 'You have fouled your nest, not us' (@thebax33) January 7, 2023
The deputy thought he was only doing what everyone else in town was doing. Zeller “expressed confusion” over being hit with a felony organized retail theft charge because he had “never taken more than $750 at a time,” court records note.
Where the deputy messed up was making a habit of what he did. “You might hit a certain retailer every Wednesday. If we can show that pattern, and come up with a total of so many days, we can use that value to charge you with theft.”
They want everyone on the street to hear the message. “We do take this seriously, and I do think we will see a trend of thefts going down.“
