Investigators suspect that on the night of March 31, Michael Ardell Curtis, 45, broke into Fat Smitty’s Restaurant located at the bottom of Discovery Bay.

“Curtis used an unknown object to break out a window in the back-kitchen area and accessed the building … Curtis then used a metal cutting device, such as a grinder, to defeat the locking mechanism of the ATM located inside and removed approximately $11,000 in US currency,” court documents states.

Jefferson County Sheriff’s officer Brian Anderson detailed the scene in his probable cause report.

“It appeared the suspect had cut his hand while making entry into the building. Multiple similar blood smudges were located throughout the restaurant, giving the appearance that the suspect might have been crawling through the building, not wanting to stand up due to the multiple motion sensors located in the building,” Anderson said.

The officer collected samples for DNA testing, which were sent to the Sorenson Forensics laboratory in Utah. On July 18, the lab matched the sample to Curtis.

Curtis was last contacted by the sheriff on May 2 of this year and arrested for the attempted burglary of PNW Press Espresso and Eats in Quilcene.

Curtis has multiple convictions for burglary dating back to 2014, along with several convictions for felony theft, court documents stated.

The court also received a letter of support from a medical practitioner in Bellevue who stated that Curtis “has shown a lot of commitment to better his mental health. He is pleasant, cooperative, friendly, and is compliant with treatment. He has not missed any appointments and I can clearly see a great improvement in his overall mental state.”

Curtis is charged with two counts, burglary in the second degree, and theft in the first degree. Each count carries a maximum penalty of 10 year imprisonment and/or $20,000 in fines plus restitution and assessments.

A trial date is set for October 9.