Small-time thieves target DK Market dumpster, take only hardware
Thieves pried open DK Market’s locked dumpster and left with just the bolts and lock hardware, but the break-in still cost the Oak Harbor store time and cleanup.
The thieves who hit DK Market in Oak Harbor got little for their trouble, but they still left behind the kind of nuisance break-in that costs a business time, cleanup and a police follow-up. Surveillance footage showed two people at the store’s back dumpster around 1 a.m. May 19, with one keeping watch while the other tore apart the locking mechanism and rifled through the bin.
They found mostly cardboard boxes. Before leaving, they took the bolts and the lock hardware, according to store manager Douglas Kim. Oak Harbor police received the report later that morning at 7:40 a.m., and officers said they already recognized the people involved.
The incident happened at DK Market, 31325 State Route 20, a convenience store and gas station that serves Oak Harbor customers from early morning until late at night. Business listings show the store generally opens from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays, which makes a back-lot break-in especially aggravating for a place built around steady foot traffic and quick turnarounds.
Police Chief Tony Slowik said the suspects appear to be transient and unhoused, and that they will be arrested for damage to property and theft once located. DK Market also plans to trespass them from the property. Under Washington law, third-degree malicious mischief covers knowingly and maliciously causing physical damage to another person’s property, while second-degree malicious mischief applies when the damage exceeds $750.
The dollar value of the haul was tiny, but the disruption was not. Someone had to review the surveillance footage, document the damage, and deal with the broken lock and bolts after the fact. For a neighborhood business, that kind of low-level crime adds up in staff time and repair work even when nothing valuable is taken.
The case also lands in a city already wrestling publicly with homelessness and nuisance complaints. Oak Harbor Mayor Ronnie Wright and Slowik launched the Pathways to Stability Task Force in January 2025 to address homelessness, services and community safety, and the issue has been a regular topic at public meetings. At a June 11, 2025 forum, Wright, Slowik, Island County Commissioner Jill Johnson and SPiN Café Executive Director Michele Hines all fielded questions about those concerns.
Oak Harbor police say they are dedicated to community safety through proactive law enforcement and community engagement, and the department publishes annual reports through the city archive. This latest dumpster break-in is small in scale, but it fits the larger question Oak Harbor merchants keep facing: how many minor property crimes can a business district absorb before they start changing the way stores operate?
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