Woman, 73, duct-taped, dragged by hair in robbery
WASHOUGAL, Wash. – Police are looking for two men who they said dragged a 73-year-old woman by her hair and used duct tape to tie her up while they robbed her home in Washougal Tuesday night.
It happened in the 3200 block of 37th Court at around 8:45 p.m.
Police said the woman was home alone when her doorbell rang. A man at her door asked her if she had seen his dog, when a second man suddenly appeared and knocked her to the floor. The men used duct tape to tie her up while they dragged her by her hair into another room of the house.
The victim, who has not been identified, was able to free herself after several minutes and tried to call 911, but her phone wasn’t working. She ran to a neighbor’s house where she called police.
"She was very upset and hysterical," said neighbor Stu Ager. "She was saying they were going to kill me. We brought her in immediately and called 911."
The woman said both men spoke English and a Slavic language that she thought was Russian. She described the man who rang her doorbell as a “clean-cut” white man in his teens or early 20s, who spoke with an eastern European accent. Police said she didn’t get a good look at the second suspect, but told them he was taller than the other man, he wore a hood and possibly wore a mask.
Police said they believe theft was the motive of the attack. It's unclear what was stolen from the home.
"It was unbelievable, we just couldn't believe it was happening next door," said Ager. "This is a very nice neighborhood, well lit, nothing like this has ever happened here, so you don't expect it."
The suspects likely left the area several minutes before the 911 call, police said.
Washougal police are encouraging neighbors to call 911 if a suspicious stranger is at the door.
"Half the time our job is just to identify who's out there - a vehicle, a person in the street - just to find out who's in our town," said Officer Kate Tierney, Washougal Police spokeswoman.
Anyone with information about the robbery or the suspects is asked to call Detective Zane Freschette at 360-835-8701.
We used to get solicitations about once every 2 weeks. Ex-convicts selling magazine subscriptions, Jehovah's witnesses selling "love", and the occasional landscaper, home cleaner, and political grass-rooter. After we installed video cameras around the house, we only have friends and Fedex come to the door ;-)
Pathetic.
It's simple, people. DON'T ANSWER YOUR DOOR IF YOU DON'T KNOW THE PERSON! If someone I don't know comes to my door, I talk to them through the front window.
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I once had a guy show up on my doorstep at 6am on a Sunday morning with a 6-pack of beer and a bag from 7/11, saying he was here to hangout and that he'd just texted so and so who told him to come here. I told him he had the wrong address and he needed to leave. The dude started becoming insistant that he had the right place so I went and got my son's Red Ryder BB gun (my gun was locked up) and as soon as I showed up at the window with the BB gun, the dude bolted.
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Now I don't know if that guy honestly had the wrong place or if he had other bad intentions but I do know this... I didn't risk taking the chance to find out.
@Tattooed_Angel Creepy!!! I do the same thing. I talk via the door.
 @Tattooed_Angel guy was lucky he didn't get his eye shot out
Poor lady. Glad she did not suffer more serious injury or worse. I would recommend video surveillance. They are easy to install, around 500$ for 6 to 8 camera system, and they are a great deterrent.
 @Komo Dragon Yeah, video, perfect for AFTER the fact.
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How about something to keep her from being harmed in the first place?
 @Bornhere  @Komo Dragon Cameras might catch robberies after the fact, but they also let you see who is at the door and around your house so you know whether to answer the door or not.
 @NRasmussen I already know whether or not to answer it. Do I know them? OK. Stranger? Talk through door without opening it. People have no business at my door unless i know them or know they are coming. That is why I have a No Soliciting sign on the door.
 @Bornhere many robbers are smart enough to avoid homes with video cameras, so it works not only after the fact.
Every month there is a column called "The Armed Citizen" in the NRA's magazines. It feautures stories, just like this one, from news outlets all over the USA, where a lawfully armed homeowner was able to defend herself and create a different outcome.
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Those stories are usually buried in the local newspaper, and NEVER repeated by the national outlets (excepting FOX News).Â
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@newspuppy Does the NRA also do monthly columns on Amiericans who were legal gun owners right up to the point where they used their firearm in a crime? I didn't think so. It's about as stupid as expecting the rest of the world to advocate the positions the NRA champions.Â
My dog's bark has the same chilling effect as chambering a 12 Gauge Shotgun. Starts with a deep throat-ed growl.
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What kind of low life, scumbag, loser, thief, coward attacks an elderly lady? I guess I answered my own question.
 @al_wa yep, mine too. I have a Great Pyrenees and last weigh was 112 and she lets me know whenever someone is at the door and yard. (also whenever those mean squirrels are there too)
Need to answer the door armed, with it pointing out the door.
 @Chico Need to NOT answer the door to strangers.
@Bornhere @Chico NOT answering the door (noet i did not say open the door) gives the impression no one is home and we have also read of the then burglars breaking windows, etc. and entering. let them know someone is home. if you don't have a peep hole get one ! shout thru the door - tell the person to go near a window so you can see them. if you don't know them or feel uncomfortable - have your phone in your hand and call 911.
 @justme Well, if they think I am not at home and decide to enter anyways, too bad for them. It'll be the last house they break into.
 @Chico Sad that's it's gotten to the point where I can't completely disagree.
Hope this lady is ok, and these thugs get caught before the next home owner decides to handle things differently. A storm door does help insulate in the winter, is a screen door in the summer, and most come with a lock to help keep out intruders.
I had something similar almost happen  a couple of days ago.A young Hispanic female with a scuzzy looking young white male in their early twenties ring the doorbell claiming to do carpet cleaning .They were "pushy" about trying to con me into letting them in.I knew right away that it was a con.and it was  either an attempt to rob me from inside my house (perhaps tying me up),the distract method (while the other one steals) or else to get inside to inspect what items to burglar later on.They went across the street a few minutes later at my neighbors house and the Hispanic female asked to use my neighbors bathroom.He also knew that it was a con too when I talked to him a few minutes later.I did record them on a high definition webcam without their knowledge.Fortunately I had a means of self defense with me too which I wouldn't hesitate to use.Â
When someone comes to my door anytime, I typically ask what they want with my door shut. Then if they sound like bull, which to me the story with the dog would be, I yell, "not interested" if they persist, I tell them to get off of my stoop. In the event they continue, I dial 911. Oh, I also carry, so I feel well protected.
@ObsidianOne I NEVER answer my door if I don't recognize the person. Call me paranoid but I feel it's better to be safe than sorry.
@Tattooed_Angel  Good for you. Do make sure they know someone is on the other side of the door though. I've heard of people knocking and when they assume that no one is there, they go around back and gain entry that way.
 @ObsidianOne Well, if they think I am not at home and decide to enter anyways, too bad for them. It'll be the last house they break into.
That's awful. It's also, unfortunately, why I never open the door if a stranger comes up to my house. Luckily, I have a big dog with a nasty bark, so that's another deterrent for anyone who comes up to my door. No one answers, but the dog sounds ready to eat you!
 @tats76  I don't either.  I think I'm the only one of my neighbors that stands inside and talks to solicitors through the glass; everyone else seems to open their doors right up, but my family was burglarized so many times growing up in California (including attempts by people with phony stories - my car broke down and I need to use your phone, etc.) that it is just second nature to me to lock my doors and not open them to people I don't know.  I also go to the door with a phone in my hand, ready to go.  Sad, isn't it?  I do make exceptions for girl scouts during cookie season, though :)
 @tats76 I have six big dogs who love to bark at strangers. So funny if I do open the door and they are standing 10 feet back.
@Chico @tats76Â Â Dogs are the best and safest defense.