EVERETT, Wash. — Package deliveries – and package thefts -- increase during the holidays.
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In Washington State, a surveillance video caught what at first looked like an ordinary package theft, but then a nanny took matters into her own hands.
Kate Anderson is the nanny for a 1-year-old in Everett.
On Tuesday, a video showed a household receiving an Amazon delivery around 10:45 a.m.
Ten minutes later, a house surveillance camera caught a car rolling up. And out the window, Kate saw a woman approaching the package.
“I saw her bending and picking it up, and they get a lot of packages. And I knew. I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, she's taking that,’ so I just took off after her, to be honest,” Anderson said.
The camera caught an incredible sequence of events. As the woman attempts to get back into the car, the vehicle speeds away and she falls onto the sidewalk at the end of the driveway.
When the woman tried to get up and flee, Anderson pulls the woman to the ground.
Anderson kept restraining the suspect and shouted to someone walking by.
“Call the police, she just stole something from my house!”
“It was intense,” Kate said.
Tanya Smith is the homeowner and Anderson’s friend.
“She’s just like a straight baller, she's amazing and doesn't take any crap from anybody,” Smith said.
About eight minutes later, the Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies arrested the woman. She was identified as Rhieanna Schindler, 29, of Everett. The sheriff’s office said she had outstanding warrants for drug possession and theft, and has been arrested more than 20 times since 2010.
The sheriff’s office said it does not recommend apprehending or tackling a package thief suspect, adding that in this case, it was fortunate that nobody got hurt.
While shaken up, Anderson said she would have done it again.
“I think I would,” she said, laughing. “I didn't ever feel like she was a threat to me. So I think I would've handled it the same way, yes, because it’s just not OK to go around doing that. It’s so not OK with me,” she said.
“It’s pretty amazing what she did, I'm very proud of her, and I’m not surprised,” Smith said.
The package that left with the getaway car was filled with presents for the 1-year-old, who slept through the whole incident.
The sheriff’s office said while it does not condone what Anderson did, it wanted her to know – they are hiring.