'Cereal' burglar hog-tied on Lewis Co. roadside after stealing a bowlful

When deputies arrived, the "cereal burglar" suspect was hog-tied along the roadside. When deputies arrived, the "cereal burglar" suspect was hog-tied along the roadside. Photo: Photo From Lewis Co. Sheriff's Office Photo: Photo From Lewis Co. Sheriff's Office Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close 'Cereal' burglar hog-tied on Lewis Co. roadside after stealing a bowlful 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A homeowner in rural Glenoma in Lewis County got a big shock Monday morning when he awoke and found a stranger sitting at his kitchen table calmly eating a bowl of cereal. A few minutes later, the stranger found himself hog-tied along the roadside after he tried to flee.

The bizarre incident unfolded bout 5:15 a.m. in the 100 block of Glenoma Road - about 45 miles east of Chehalis -- said Chief Deputy Dusty Breen of the Lewis County Sheriff's Office.

Apparently the stranger had walked right in the house, helped himself to some cereal, poured milk on it and sat down to enjoy a bowlful.

But when the stranger saw the 69-year-old homeowner, he jumped up and ran from the house. The homeowner grabbed a rifle and ran after him.

Meanwhile, another resident of the home called 911 and deputies were dispatched to the scene.

The homeowner found the suspect - later identified as a 52-year-old transient from Tampa, Fla. - along the roadside about 500 feet from their residence and ordered him to the ground at riflepoint.

The suspect complied and the homeowner put away his rifle. The residents then hog-tied the suspect and waited for deputies to arrive, Breen said.

When deputies got there, the man was still hog-tied and appeared to be under the influence of some kind of mind-altering substance.

The suspect told deputies he had just tried a "new drug" in the woods. He also said he had been in Florida only a few hours earlier.

Deputies placed the man under arrest and booked him into the Lewis County Jail for investigation of burglarizing one bowl of cereal.