Construction excavator stolen at weigh station

A truck driver hauling heavy machinery already was having a bad week when a state trooper stopped him and forced him to abandon his rig for not having a commercial vehicle license.

Then, while his construction excavator rested on a trailer outside a State Patrol commercial vehicle weigh station at the junction of Interstate 90 and state Route 18, thieves stole it Wednesday during daylight hours, Trooper Jeff Merrill said.

"It's pretty brazen,"

Merrill said.

"They would have had to load it up on another rig."

The $70,000 Caterpillar mini excavator had been parked at the weigh station since Monday.

The trooper who pulled the truck over first noticed that the excavator's bucket attachment had popped loose from the trailer and was dangling by a chain. During an inspection, the trooper discovered the driver had no commercial vehicle endorsement and ordered him to return with one before he could drive away with the vehicle...

Full news: seattlepi.nwsource.com