Police say suspect had strange way of supporting troops

The not-so tricked-out gold 1995 Lexus was linked to the recent burglary of a torched Spokane Valley restaurant. The car sports a red-white-and-blue magnet asking folks to support our troops.

But the suspect, 28-year-old Vasily V. Florianovich, has an odd way of showing his patriotism, Spokane County sheriff’s officials said.

On Thursday, detectives raided his home, 952 S. Perry St. Apt. 1, and reported finding a cache of stolen goods. They say they found several sets of camouflage U.S. Air Force uniforms inside Florianovich’s Lexus.

One set of fatigues belongs to a Spokane Police Department officer who is deployed out of state and another set came from an Air Force chaplain, Detective Mark Stewart said. He was on the phone with Fairchild Air Force Base trying to figure out when and where the uniforms were stolen.

“It doesn’t look to me like they would come from the same storage unit,” Stewart said.

The raid was related to the investigation into a Feb. 21 fire that gutted Susie’s Steak and Seafood at 9611 E. Trent Ave. Fire investigators from Spokane Valley and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives believe the fire was arson, spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan said.

On Sunday, a witness arrived at the burned restaurant and saw a gold Lexus parked in back. Its trunk was open, and it contained a couple of cases of cigarettes covered with soot, Reagan said.

Thinking the Lexus’ owner was in the restaurant, the witness walked in the front door calling out for whoever was inside. “The safe had been disturbed, and files were lying around,” Reagan said. “As he was going in the front, the bad guys were going out the back.”

Detectives relayed information about the Lexus during a briefing, and Spokane Valley police Sgt. Jim Gladden recognized the vehicle. Investigators went to Florianovich’s apartment, and the witness from the restaurant identified the car as the one he saw behind Susie’s, Reagan said.

Detectives with the sheriff’s Property Crimes Task Force and Career Criminal Unit and ATF obtained a search warrant and raided Florianovich’s apartment Thursday afternoon.

Nobody was home. But inside the home, investigators found piles of stolen property, Reagan said.

“We have evidence linking them to the burglary subsequent to the fire,” Reagan said. “But the arson case remains under investigation.”

Along with the soot-covered cigarettes, detectives found stolen tools, the uniforms and several receipts for copper sold to a scrap yard. “We’ve had a lot of burglaries at copper supply stores,” Reagan said. “The more crimes we can tie them to, the more likely they will tell us what is going on.”

Detectives called Dennis Snyder, superintendent for Walker Construction Co., to the scene. He had reported more than $8,000 worth of tools stolen last month from a job site at Mirabeau Park. Investigators dragged out about $3,500 worth of tools that Snyder recognized. A lot of the tools inside the home came from somewhere else.

“I’m just elated. I didn’t think I’d ever see it again,” Snyder said. “I was in the process of replacing some of this stuff just to keep the job moving forward.”

Reagan didn’t know where the suspects got the uniforms. Investigators had tried to contact the police officer’s wife, but Reagan didn’t know if they reached her.

Based on the multiple names on the uniforms, it appeared that the burglar struck a cleaning or custom fitting service, Reagan said.

Investigators say they have enough evidence to charge Florianovich with second-degree burglary and first-degree possession of stolen property.

Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to call 911.