TACOMA, Wash. — A Tacoma musician has been reunited with his stolen clarinet after pawn shop workers recognized the instrument when the suspected thief brought it into their shop.
Janelle Morehart, co-owner of Ponders Pawnbrokers of Lakewood, received a phone call Monday from another pawn shop, warning her that the man could be on his way with the stolen clarinet.
"He said, 'Hey, I'm pretty sure the clarinet on TV is in my store. I think they might be heading to you,'" Morehart told KING 5.
She called police and stalled when the man showed up. Officers eventually took the man into custody.
Morehart's next call was to the clarinet owner, Victor Prinsen. On May 16, he was hosting a group of friends in the showroom of his store, High Note Audio, when someone he didn't know quietly sat in the front of the store between Prinsen's saxophone and clarinet.
Prinsen said when he turned around to check on his friends, the man snatched the clarinet, which is worth over $5,000, and walked out the front door. Prinsen chased the suspect, but he fled in a waiting getaway car.
"I just had a huge sob, actually, of relief and surprise," Prinsen said once his clarinet was returned. "I really didn't expect that to ever come back."
The return of his clarinet was right on cue. He was able to get the instrument back in time for a concert on Monday, May 21.
"I'm very grateful to everyone involved for putting energy into this," he said.