PORT ANGELES — A Sequim man who had been sought by law enforcement for a little less than a week will be formally charged in Clallam County Superior Court on Monday.
Jay J. Dodaro, 33, was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Clallam County jail for investigation of four counts of motor vehicle theft, three counts of residential burglary, two counts of possession of a stolen vehicle, two counts of first-degree theft, two counts of second-degree burglary and one count of third-degree theft.
Dodaro’s bail has been set at $50,000, according to court documents. He remained in the Clallam County jail Saturday.
Dodaro also was booked on five warrants, including warrants from Clallam, Jefferson and Thurston counties.
Clallam County Sheriff’s deputies, who had been looking for Dodaro since March 15, said they found him hiding in a shipping container behind Sunny Farms in the Carlsborg area.
Deputies had been tipped off by citizen who had seen Dodaro in the area.
The counts for which Dodaro was booked into jail span five separate investigations, all conducted by the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s deputy Eric Munger interviewed Dodaro on Tuesday about these cases and wrote the following narratives, which are in court records:
■ On Dec. 25 last year, a couple whose residence was not identified in court papers called the sheriff’s office and reported their 1995 Toyota Tacoma stolen.
The couple had been contacted by the Tumwater Police Department after the truck was recovered there and Dodaro arrested as the driver.
Dodaro reportedly admitted to stealing the truck during Tuesday’s interview.
■ On Jan. 30, a Sequim man had reported someone broke into his house and detached garage while he was at home with his son and that more than $5,000 worth of items were stolen from his garage and home in addition to the man’s Honda Ridgeline pickup truck.
The homeowner said that a man had rung his doorbell at about 7:30 that night and that “something seemed off about the guy.”
The homeowner later helped identify the man as Dodaro.
Dodaro told Munger on Tuesday he had committed the burglary but that another man who was with him had taken the truck.
■ Between March 7 and March 8, a Sequim homeowner reported several items stolen from his house including a $15,000 2004 GMC Canyon pickup truck, a $825 gas-powered tree limber, a notebook computer, and a 5-gallon jar containing $1,500 in dimes, nickels and quarters.
The truck was recovered on March 15.
Dodaro told Munger he had stolen the truck and committed the burglary, but said he had stolen only the gas-powered tree limber from the shed near the house, according to court documents.
■ On March 15, Munger was told by a confidential source that Dodaro was in the Forks area and driving a motor home.
Witnesses at the Hungry Bear Cafe in Beaver, where the motor home had been abandoned, identified Dodaro as the driver of the vehicle, which had been reported stolen in Grays Harbor County.
Munger said Dodaro told him he had stolen the motor home in Ocean Shores.
■ On March 16, a Sappho couple reported someone had entered their home in the late afternoon and taken a dish of change, the keys to their 2000 Buick LeSabre and the car itself.
Dodaro told Munger he took the LeSabre after finding his way to the home through the surrounding woods and that he drove the car to Sequim, where he was subsequently arrested.
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Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
