Police officers in Tacoma, Washington, were aided in tracking down suspects by an unlikely partner: the snow.

According to a KIRO 7 Local News report, deputies from the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department arrested two suspects by tracking them down the good-old-fashioned way –following their footprints left in the snow.

Deputies responded to a call at 2:40 a.m. on 72nd Street East for a possible burglary. When the officers arrived on the scene, they saw two suspects fleeing, but instead of giving chase, they decided to check the house and see if a crime had been committed. What they found was a detached garage door and a broken window on a door.

Immediately, they deployed a K-9 and set off after the suspects, which wasn’t too difficult given that they had left obvious footprints in the snow. The footprints led them to the suspects – one of whom was hiding in a dumpster, and the other high up in a tree.

The two suspects were arrested and booked in the Pierce County Jail for second-degree burglary and obstructing an officer. Perhaps they should have thought of foregoing their burglary until the snow melted.