Two men have pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from an alleged theft of approximately $2,000 in merchandise from an Ulta Beauty store in Covington on Aug. 20.
According to King County prosecutors, deputies began investigating after a store alarm was triggered, and surveillance footage showed Jaycob Fernandez allegedly leaving the store with unpaid merchandise and entering a waiting vehicle. Deputies later located Fernandez and 24-year-old Kane Christensen in a stolen Hyundai Sonata at a Kent gas station.
Authorities said the driver fled as deputies approached, striking another vehicle and driving recklessly through traffic. A King County Sheriff’s Office helicopter tracked the vehicle to Covington, where the driver abandoned it and fled on foot.
Investigators said the suspect entered a nearby Fred Meyer, went to a bathroom and changed clothes. Deputies arrested Christensen as he exited the store. Authorities also recovered an illegal short-barrel shotgun that they said had been covered by clothing dropped during the pursuit.
Christensen faces charges including organized retail theft, attempting to elude police, possession of a stolen vehicle, hit-and-run, and unlawful possession of a firearm. He is being held on $150,000 bail.
Fernandez was arrested at the Kent gas station and faces a second-degree organized retail theft charge. His bail was set at $5,000.
Prosecutors said both men have prior felony convictions. The allegations remain pending in court, and both defendants have pleaded not guilty.
