Serial burglar caught nearly naked in downtown Tacoma break-in has been arrested

TACOMA, Wash. — A suspected serial burglar suspected in several downtown Tacoma break-ins was arrested Monday.

Police put out a bulletin earlier this month asking for the public’s held in finding Tyres Drayton, a 31-year-old transient allegedly sneaking into assisted living centers, apartments and businesses.

On Monday, Everett police took him into custody.

Pierce County prosecutors have since charged him with four counts of second-degree burglary, three counts of residential burglary, theft of a firearm, two counts of attempted second-degree burglary and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

He will be arraigned after being brought back to Pierce County.

Drayton, who has been arrested 19 times in the last decade, is suspected in at least six burglaries.

Charging papers give this count:

The first in the string of burglaries occurred Dec. 1 in the 400 block of Fawcett Avenue.

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A facility manager noticed the window cracked and found a handgun and rent checks had been stolen.

Drayton’s fingerprints were found on the window.

On March 3, a woman woke up and discovered Drayton in her kitchen. When she asked what he was doing there, he calmly responded that he was charging his cell phone.

Surveillance footage captured Drayton leaving the scene.

On April 26, the owner of an antique store in the 700 block of Broadway came to work and found several items had been moved around.

After watching surveillance footage from the store, the owner saw Drayton inside. It was unclear whether he stole anything.

At a nearby apartment building, the door had been pried open, and Drayton’s cell phone allegedly had been left behind.

A security guard watched a video on the phone “of the defendant holding a silver revolver and that the defendant stated he was now armed and able to protect himself,” records say.

The next day, Drayton was allegedly spotted stealing a specialized bicycle from a locked apartment garage after making himself coffee in the apartment lobby.

On May 11, surveillance cameras caught Drayton entering a business lobby and going upstairs. He returned downstairs in just his boxers and socks and holding a screwdriver before going back upstairs.

He tried to return two days later and broke the glass on the door trying to pry it open, records say.

Drayton is also accused of breaking into a senior housing facility several times, once coming through the window and once being let inside by a resident.

The News Tribune