Hayden Lake Man Suspected In Hit-And-Run, Thefts

Washington State Patrol troopers believe a 31-yearold Hayden Lake man may have been involved in a hitand-run accident Friday, as well as a string of thefts.

Rory Brown was arrested by Kootenai County sheriff’s deputies about 1 p.m. after he called them to his house to report his pickup stolen. Deputies discovered Brown had a felony warrant in Lewiston for forgery and booked him into jail.

The pickup he reported stolen was found by WSP trooper Mike Shaw about 6:30 a.m. at Sprague and Adams in the Spokane Valley. The truck had crashed into a power pole, causing an electrical outage for several hours in the area.

Inside the truck were a number of stolen checks, credit cards and purses, said Sgt. Chris Powell.

Brown also was named in a Shoshone County warrant for theft.

Troopers also found groceries recently purchased from the Albertson’s at Sprague and Pines and went to the store to talk to the clerks. One told troopers he remembered a man who cashed a check and used a credit card for identification.

When the man left, the clerk became suspicious and wrote down his license plate number and a description of his truck when he drove away. Both matched the crashed pickup, Powell said.

Before WSP troopers could find Brown, he called deputies in Hayden Lake and claimed his truck had been stolen. He may be charged with possession of stolen property, forgery and theft, Powell said.