SEQUIM — A man arrested for burglarizing the Sequim Veterans of Foreign War Post 4760 in March pleaded guilty to second-degree burglary and served time in jail earlier this summer.
Jordan Salo, 30, served 30 days in jail with time served from his March 12 arrest as part of a plea deal with the Clallam County Prosecutor’s Office.
He must remain in community custody through the Department of Corrections for a year, and he was ordered to undergo a substance abuse evaluation and any necessary treatment, according to court documents.
His deal with deputy prosecuting attorney Sarah Woolman was in lieu of a two-day trial.
Salo wrote in June 13 court documents that “on March 12, I entered the VFW Hall in Sequim, Clallam County, Washington, without authorization with the intention of stealing property.”
Documents also state Salo has a chemical dependency that contributed to the crime.
As a first-time offender, he faced one to three months in jail, and Woolman agreed to drop charges of first-degree trafficking in stolen property, and first-degree theft.
Salo was ordered by judge Brent Basden to begin paying $40 a month, starting in August, to the court for $600 total for DNA collection ($100) and the VFW ($500).
He originally pleaded not guilty on March 25 to all charges.
Sequim Police reported a VFW staffer discovered the bar area at 169 E. Washington St. burglarized on March 12 with about $613 in alcohol stolen from a locked bar cabinet, $4,300 in band equipment, and other miscellaneous items such as a neon bar light and television, all totaling about $5,600.
Salo’s father, Jeffrey, a manager of the upstairs facility, and Salo’s uncle, Brad, the building owner, searched Jordan’s room and found the stolen goods, court documents say.
After obtaining Jordan’s phone, his father and uncle texted Sequim police photos of a conversation about him moving the stolen items before the bar opened that day, court documents state.
Salo told authorities he was storing the items for a friend, and that he had access to his apartment only from the alley. However, Sequim police said in their probable cause report there was no evidence of a break-in from the outside.
The VFW closed for two days due to damages from the burglary.
Salo apologized to the court and VFW at his sentencing. He was represented by Seth Doherty.
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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. Reach him at mnash@sequimgazette.com.