Pierce County law enforcement officers are searching for a man suspected of using stolen identifications and credit cards to buy expensive power tools.
Investigators say their suspect, Keith Thomas Whiteman, then sells the tools to make a cash profit.
Pierce County prosecutors have charged Whiteman, 36, with two counts of forgery and one count each of identity theft and theft in a Gig Harbor case and identity theft and attempted theft in a Tacoma case.
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Warrants have been issued for his arrest in both cases.
Tacoma-Pierce County Crime Stoppers reports that law enforcement agencies throughout the state have investigated Whiteman for identity theft and forgery. He has at least seven warrants for his arrest and 14 prior felony convictions.
In the Tacoma and Gig Harbor cases, Whiteman walked into home improvement stores and selected expensive power tools. He presented the clerk with the identification and credit card belonging to another man, court documents state. The other man later told officers that he’d lost his wallet a year before and had been an identity theft victim since.
A friend of Whiteman’s told police that Whiteman recently relapsed and started using methamphetamine again, according to court documents. Since then, Whiteman “has been going crazy stealing,” the documents state.
Whiteman is 5 feet 10 and 190 pounds. He has brown hair and hazel eyes. He’s known to frequent Kitsap and Pierce counties. He’s been known to drive a 1999 gray Chevrolet Tahoe to transport stolen goods, according to charging documents.
Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1,000 for information leading to Whiteman’s arrest. Tipsters may remain anonymous and can reach Crime Stoppers at 253-591-5959.
