Jay Gladden
Melissa Moore
Law enforcement officials are on the lookout for a couple who are wanted in connection with a string of local robberies.
Police said Friday they are searching for Jay Gladden, 29, who they said is responsible for the Sept. 17 robbery of the Hoquiam Twin Star Credit Union and a robbery of Huckle-Bearies coffee shop in Aberdeen. Melissa Moore, 30, police said, is responsible for the Sept. 9 attempted robbery of the Radio Shack on 2729 Sumner Ave. in Aberdeen.
Hoquiam Police Chief Jeff Myers confirmed his department is working with the Aberdeen Police Department, “because the robberies are so closely connected.”
Police think that the Gladden and Moore are in a romantic relationship and at one time were living together in an apartment on Sumner Avenue. It is believed that the two may still be in each other’s company. Neighbors of the couple said they believed Gladden and Moore were having serious financial problems around the time the crimes took place.
On Sept. 9, Moore entered the Aberdeen Radio Shack and allegedly demanded the money in the cash register. Moore fled the store without any money after the store clerks activated the burglary alarm.
Police said that on Sept. 17, Gladden presented a note to a teller at the Twin Star Credit Union, demanding money. Gladden did not show a weapon, but he received an undisclosed amount of currency and then fled the bank, according to police.
Later that day, police staked out an apartment on the 2500 block of Sumner Ave. where they thought Gladden was hiding, probably with Moore. At dusk, the Aberdeen SWAT team forced entry into the apartment, but they believe the couple had escaped before officers could close in. Law enforcement officials seized evidence at the scene including a van thought to have been used by either Gladden or Moore. Since the forced entry, police have been searching the county for the couple.
