RIVER FALLS – Multiple officers executed a search warrant last week on a River Falls home belonging to a man suspected in multiple thefts in his neighborhood. Neighbors were told to shelter in place while the man was apprehended.

Kyle William Cook, 36, River Falls, was ordered to pay $2,000 cash bond Oct. 23 in Pierce County Circuit Court on felony burglary – building or dwelling, felony theft – movable property – special facts, and three misdemeanor theft – movable property charges. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 12.5 years in prison and/or fines up to $25,000.

According to the complaint:

River Falls police and Pierce County deputies executed a search warrant at 6:02 p.m. Oct. 21 at 1009 W. Division St. to locate and secure evidence related to Cook’s suspected criminal activity. Officers called Cook on the phone several times, but he didn’t answer. Neighbors adjacent to his residence were advised to shelter in place while police announced their presence over a PA system. Cook exited his residence and police arrested him.

The house was cluttered and smelled of animals. During the search, police located two suspected stolen guns under Cook’s mattress: A black 12-gauge Remington 870 and a 12-gauge Wetherby over/under shotgun. They also found a Ruger 9mm handgun under a pillow with a loaded magazine and a Grossman air gun resembling a 9mm handgun in the living room.

They also found multiple police radios labeled with “Minneapolis Police,” “St. Paul” and “Woodbury,” police uniforms and equipment such as a taser and body armor scattered throughout closets and on furniture. Some of the radios appeared to be older and possibly decommissioned. However, one body armor vest looked “uncomfortably close” to an officer’s vest, including a gold metal badge. “As tenured Sergeant, if I were to see this being worn from ten feet away, at a quick glance I would consider them one in the same,” one officer wrote in the report.

In the living room, officers found a West Maple Street sign believed to be city property, along with various tools, including Makita and Milwaukee power tools, drill bits, and a Craftsman toolset. Some of these items appeared new and were in the residence and Cook's vehicle; they also matched descriptions of stolen property. Officers also discovered a wall safe that had been drilled out, suggesting it may have been stolen.

During the search, officers located a sweatshirt and black gloves matching the description of items seen in surveillance footage from a recent incident. They also found a small amount of marijuana in a clear container in the living room, in drawer of a coffee table.

In Cook's vehicle, officers found additional Makita tools, including a Sawzall and batteries, and drill bits.

The thefts

At 6:17 p.m. Oct. 8, officers were called to a theft in the 200 block of North Winter Street. The property owners had returned home after a few days away and realized several item were missing from a detached garage, including Makita drills and batteries (six), a Predator 3,500-watt generator, a pair of JBL noise-canceling headphones and a child’s pair of green noise-canceling headphones. In all, the stolen items were worth $2,382. The complainants said when they returned home, the garage door was unplugged and the door unlocked.

At 2:24 p.m. Oct. 19, a caller reported two guns taken out of a truck parked in the 20o block of Falls Street. The complainant said he’d left the guns, a Remington 870 shotgun and a Weatherby over/under shotgun, in his truck under the back bench seat while out to eat after bowhunting. When he returned at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18, he parked the truck near Falls and Cedar streets. At about 11 a.m. the next morning, he noticed the guns were gone. The truck had no signs of forced entry. A camouflage bag containing ammunition was also missing.

At 8:11 a.m. Oct. 20, a resident in the 100 block of Gambel Street told police her video surveillance footage showed a man approach her back patio at 10:45 p.m. Oct. 19. He placed what appeared to be a handgun on her fire pit table, moved a chair beneath a mounted Stick-Up camera, removed it and left the area. The suspect did not take a front door peephole camera. The complainant was inside the house asleep at the time of the incident.

The video footage clearly showed the suspect’s face, though it was captured in the camera’s night vision mode. The suspect wore a black hoodie with stripes down the arms, blue jeans and a black beanie. Police also obtained Ring camera footage from the Creative Homes display house at 1105 Compton Ave., in which the same person is seen walking up to the front door, looking at the camera and walking away. Police were able to identify the suspect as Cook. They had been in contact with him previously for an impersonating an officer case in July and recognized him from mugshots. After photos of the suspect were posted on a Facebook community page, police received a call from someone identifying Cook at 11 a.m. Oct. 21.

After police arrested Cook, they interviewed him at River Falls Police Department. He at first denied that the person in the video footage was him. Eventually, he agreed that it was “probably” him, though he denied ever carrying a firearm. He also told police he bought the tools secondhand or online.

Cook admitted to owning a Ruger P95 pistol and multiple shotguns, including a .410 gauge and several 12-gauges. When asked about the two guns found under his mattress, he said he had no idea where they came from or how they got there. The guns’ serial numbers matched those of the ones stolen from a truck a couple of blocks from Cook’s residence.

Cook finally admitted it was possible he entered garages or homes while intoxicated: “I hate to think that I was so drunk that I would do something like that, but I know that it's not impossible." He also said the only person who had been in his house was him, so it was possible he had taken the guns while drunk and put them under his mattress.

Cook is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 11 a.m. Oct. 30 in Pierce County Circuit Court.