Stolen RV recovered in Aberdeen; police get suspect out of jail to start vehicle for owner
Olive Teague just wanted their RV back.
Looking to expand their business, The Seattle Mermaid School, Olive spent their last dollar to purchase an RV - not only for their business, but as a place to live.
Olive bought the RV on December 10. On December 19, it was stolen out of Seattle, along with all of their personal and business items inside.
Nearly five months later, on May 9, Olive received a call from the Aberdeen Police Department that their RV had been found.
They were watching night one of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour on Netflix when they got the call.
A group of friends joined Olive to retrieve the RV. The squatters in the RV had been removed by police, and they watched Olive as they went inside.
“Inside, we found all sorts of unmentionables,” Olive said. “Everything from guns, drugs, money, stolen jewelry, stolen speakers, and so much musical equipment.”
Their brand-new mattress and walls were covered in burn marks. The RV’s blue carpets were completely black. The AC unit was ripped out of the roof.
Olive says they were in the process of switching over their insurance to a bundled policy when the RV was stolen, and the damage would not be covered.
Olive and their friends were working to clean out the RV when they overheard one of the Aberdeen police officers say, “You know, I know a guy back at the station who would definitely know how to get this thing started.”
According to the Aberdeen Police Department, one of the officers knew it was important for Olive to get their RV back and the officer wanted to do what he could to make that happen.
The officer called the jail to speak with the suspect who was found in possession of the RV about starting the vehicle, but the explanation was not fruitful.
Police say the suspect, who claimed to have purchased the RV back in December (after it was stolen), offered to show the officer how to start it.
Olive said when the police said they were bringing someone to help them, Olive thought the police meant another officer.
“I’m literally pulling things out of the back of the vehicle,” Olive said. “And I turn around and walked toward the front and there is this gentleman with a screwdriver - in his full orange jumpsuit.”
Olive said it took a moment to realize what was happening. Olive knew they had to grab their phone to record what was happening.
Olive said the man apologized profusely for punching out the ignition. He said he had no idea the RV was stolen, which Olive doubted.
As the inmate showed Olive how to restart the RV with a screwdriver, Olive says the Aberdeen officer was standing just outside in case anything went wrong.
“But as you can see from the video, the gentleman was not a dangerous man,” Olive said. “He was very kind the whole time. It was clear to me he was operating from a place of need.”
After the man helped start the RV, Olive returned to clean the vehicle. That’s when Olive found a gun, which Aberdeen police helped them clear.
Aberdeen police tell KIRO 7, “This is not standard practice, but the officer had the victim in mind and wanted to make sure (they were) able to get (their) RV back home.”
The suspect was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle.
All videos and photos courtesy Olive Teague.
