Man allegedly targets home while family is at girl's funeral

PORT ORCHARD, Wash. — On the same day a Port Orchard family laid their little girl to rest after she suddenly died of the flu, they say a crook targeted their home.

But a grieving father turned the tables on the would-be burglar.

Brian Lowery asked KIRO 7 not to show his face for security reasons, especially since he ran down the suspect.

“Taking advantage of that though at the time is inexcusable,” said Lowery outside of his home in Port Orchard.

He says his house was targeted on his family's darkest day: his daughter's funeral.

Piper Lowery died of the flu in late January.

She was 12 years old.

The 6th grader had asthma but was otherwise healthy.

She and her mother had been sick with the flu at about the same time.

She was taken to the doctor several times and treated with several medicines including Tamiflu, but it was no use, Piper died within a week.

"We had someone stay at the house to watch the house and exactly at the time of the funeral somebody knocked on the door looking for a cat," he said.

The man appeared to get spooked by the person at the house and quickly left.

Following the memorial service, Lowery's anger turned into determination.

He started searching through obituaries for a family with an upcoming funeral.

“I just wanted to stop the guy from doing it to somebody else, you know," said Lowery.

He says a widow allowed him and a few others to stake out her home for the suspect.

Lowery says he saw the same guy driving by on the day of that family’s funeral.

This time, Lowery ran down and boxed in the alleged crook in the driveway until police arrived.

"He's pretty fortunate that I did it the way that I did it," he said.

Lowery is thankful his house wasn’t broken into and that his girl's things, including a new camera, weren't stolen.

“He would have taken that camera, I guarantee it, because it's an expensive camera and it would be gone and I wouldn't have those memories anymore," he said.

Shane Grinde is in the Kitsap County Jail.

A judge lowered his bail from $25,000 to $10,000.

The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office tells KIRO 7 that because authorities can’t prove a burglary was going to happen, Grinde could only be charged with possession of burglary tools.

This family would like funeral homes to remind grieving families to have someone watch their home during funeral services.

Cox Media Group