Buyers got stolen goods ‘below cost’

Is it an unbelievable deal or a five-finger discount?

If someone takes you to a warehouse, offers to sell you household items at well below liquidation prices, you might want to think twice before handing over cash.

A 35-year-old Spokane man’s family and friends lost new appliances, dining-room sets and bedroom groups that he sold to them. Scott Liddell told them he had purchased the merchandise at discount prices and was passing along the savings to them. Investigators say Lidell has confessed to stealing the items.

The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office returned $13,000 of the $15,000 worth of merchandise to the rightful owner, Liquidation World, on Thursday. The household goods that were returned had been sold out of a warehouse at Sprague and University between January and July.

The business can only hope to get back more stolen items, which detectives say Lidell sold at two yard sales.

Lidell could face up to 30 felony charges, including possession of stolen property, trafficking of stolen property and 19 counts second-degree burglary, Spokane County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan said.

Detectives say Lidell got a key to the Liquidation World warehouse to use the restroom and get water because he worked for a car company that leased the parking lot out front. Reagan said Lidell used the keys to take people he knew inside at night for “after-hours discount shopping sprees.”

Detectives say those visitors believed they were buying directly from Lidell. He sold items including lamps, dinnerware, dining room tables and chairs, solid wood dressers, headboards and footboards, and Maytag washers and dryers.

A refrigerator worth $1,300 sold for $350, Sheriff’s Office detective Dave Herrin said.

“Lidell also stole products himself which he later sold at yard sales at his home and the home of his grandmother,” Herrin said.

Detectives are trying to locate people who bought items at those garage sales, at 3707 E. Ninth and 709 E. Kiernan.

“They probably now own stolen merchandise,” Herrin said. “If we get a call, we can probably work something out.”

Dana Marlow, a Liquidation World manager, said an employee had told her that items were being moved around at the warehouse, and some were possibly missing, but they were confused as to how it was happening.

“You know, you think you have all the keys,” Marlow said. She didn’t know the used-car dealership employees had been given access to the warehouse by the facility’s landlord.

Detectives said they found out about the thefts through a tipster. “One of his ex-girlfriends called the (Spokane) Valley Police when she figured out he was a fraud,” Herrin said.

After investigating the thefts, detectives went to Lidell’s home on Halloween.

“We had him on five burglaries,” said Sgt. Steve Barbieri, who leads the property crimes task force. “He confessed to the other 14 counts.”