BELLEVUE, Wash. Bellevue police safely dismantled a homemade explosive device found inside a stolen vehicle on Sunday following the arrest of a shoplifting suspect, FOX 13 Seattle reported, citing a police press release.
According to the Bellevue Police Department, officers responded around 6 p.m. Sunday to reports of a theft in progress at a business near the intersection of Northeast 8th Street and 156th Avenue Northeast. Officers quickly identified and contacted the suspect, 30-year-old Johny Mixayboua.
Authorities say Mixayboua gave police false information about his identity. While he was being detained, officers noticed what appeared to be him reaching for an item in his jacket, which turned out to be a firearm, and he was quickly disarmed.
Following the arrest, officers found a key fob in the suspect's possession that belonged to a car recently reported stolen. After finding the car in the parking lot, officers discovered what appeared to be an improvised explosive device inside.
The Bellevue Police Department Bomb Squad was dispatched to the scene, confirmed it was a viable device, and safely removed it to be dismantled.
Mixayboua was booked into the King County Jail and faces a long list of charges, including first-degree assault, driving with a suspended license, possession of a stolen firearm, unlawful possession of a firearm, obstruction of law enforcement, and making false or misleading statements. He also had existing warrants in King County and with the U.S. Marshals, though details about the specific nature or origin of those warrants were not immediately released.
FOX 13 Seattle previously covered Mixayboua in 2023, when he was convicted and sentenced to three years in prison for stealing mail trucks and mail in Seattle.