Drunk teen tried using steak knives to cut into Kennewick homes, say police

A drunk teen was caught with a handful of steak knives that he was using to cut window screens in a Kennewick neighborhood, police said.

Shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday, a woman on the 1900 block of South Harrison Street heard rubbing and scraping noises outside her window, Kennewick police posted on Facebook.

When she went out to investigate, she noticed the window screen had been cut and found a steak knife next to her fence.

She called 911 and police searched her home and didn’t find anyone inside.

Officers soon found at least eight other homes in the neighborhood with cut or removed screens.

As police continued to search, they found a locked portable toilet at an empty construction site.

Officers found a teen inside along with several steak knives that matched the one left by the fence.

“It appeared the juvenile male was intoxicated and cutting window screens to open windows and enter the homes,” Kennewick police said.

The boy was booked into the Benton Franklin Juvenile Detention Center on suspicion of attempted burglary.

Police are asking residents in that neighborhood to check their windows and to call to report anything suspicious.

This story was originally published March 17, 2021 at 10:43 AM.