The hammer fell before the ball dropped.

A 62-year-old Issaquah man is facing a felony charge of first-degree theft after he allegedly stole a U-Haul trailer from the rental business in Port Townsend late on New Year’s Eve.

Larry Duane Thomas was arrested shortly after 11:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31 near Kala Point.

Deputies had been called to the U-Haul rental facility an hour earlier on a report of a theft in progress. A caller said someone in a black SUV was trying to steal a trailer from the business, located on Airport Cutoff Road, and had sped away with the trailer through the construction area.

The SUV was gone when the first deputy arrived at the U-Haul lot. 

After the crew of a medic unit reported seeing a black SUV towing a U-Haul trailer on Prospect Avenue, deputies began to methodically canvas the area, according to a probable cause report for Thomas’ arrest.

A deputy found a black Nissan Pathfinder towing a U-Haul trailer on Kala Point Drive, and discovered the license plates on the Nissan had been previously registered to a 1996 Ford Ranger.

The driver of the SUV was identified as Thomas, according to court documents.

When Thomas was told the trailer had been reported stolen, Thomas allegedly said he had used the trailer the previous week “and that he had not finished using it.” 

He admitted that he had not rented the trailer again, and that the business was closed when he took it. Thomas allegedly told a deputy: “I was just going to move the furniture and take it right back.”

The trailer was valued at more than $5,000. 

Thomas was arrested for first-degree theft and booked into the Jefferson County Jail.

Thomas bailed out of jail Jan. 3.

He did not show up for his arraignment Friday in Jefferson County Superior Court.

Deputy Prosecutor Melissa Pleimann noted Thomas had 26 arrest warrants in his history, and 13 convictions for theft.

She asked Judge Keith Harper to sign a $10,000 warrant for Thomas’ arrest.

Harper agreed and issued the warrant as requested.