Skunk sprays church robbery suspect Grant M. Simonson moments before arrest: Sheriff

Whoever smelled it, distributed it.

A suspected church burglar in Washington state received a smelly shipment after a skunk sprayed him just before his arrest last week, authorities said.

The incident happened around 3:10 a.m. Thursday when deputies responded to an ongoing burglary at the Church of the Nazarene in Deer Park, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday.

The caller told deputies that a man wearing a face mask and holding a flashlight was seen on a live surveillance feed walking around inside the church and looking at the audio equipment.

Deputies arrived at the scene and saw a man, later identified as Grant M. Simonson, 28, walk past an open window and then begin to exit, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies demanded that the suspect show his hands and lie down on the ground.

« He began following orders when suddenly a skunk came running around the corner, approached Simonson and released his well-known, smelly spray before fleeing the area, » the sheriff’s office said. .

Simonson was taken into custody without further incident.

After deputies read him his rights, they said Simonson claimed he was ‘wide awake and bored’ so he went for a bike ride and noticed an open church window.

Deputies said he claimed he had gone home before walking back, removing a screen from the window and entering because he was ‘curious’.

Simonson was incarcerated in Spokane County Jail for second-degree burglary. He was released later that day on his own recognizance.

As for the skunk, deputies said the whereabouts of the animal were unknown.

« The skunk is a wild animal and is not affiliated with law enforcement or the church, » the sheriff’s office said.