Liberty Lake police arrest pair in RV break-ins

Liberty Lake police are hoping a recent string of thefts of batteries and televisions from parked RVs will come to an end after two arrests Sunday.

An officer discovered a man lying on the ground next to a car parked outside a local RV business. The man reportedly confessed that he was a lookout for his partner, who was breaking into RVs, said Sgt. Clint Gibson.

Officers located the other man, identified as 20-year-old Joseph L. Sutton-Kaley, inside an RV and ordered him to come out. He did so and police located a gun that Sutton-Kaley allegedly hid inside the RV’s bathroom.

The lookout was identified as Jacob L. Thompson, 21. Both men were booked into the Spokane County Jail on felony charges of second-degree burglary and criminal conspiracy. Sutton-Kaley also has an additional felony charge of first-degree burglary.

Police received a call the afternoon of Dec. 17 to report a man covering his license plate with dirt in a parking lot in the 1300 block of North Liberty Lake Road. His behavior was witnessed by Detective Ray Bourgeois, who responded to the call. The man was contacted by officers and he told them he thought his registration was expired, but it wasn’t. The man appeared to be nervous, Gibson said, but allowed police to search his van. Nothing was found and he was released.

Police were quickly notified that the van was wanted in connected to a child abduction case in Nevada and the van was located and pulled over. The driver claimed he had bought the van in Redding, Calif., from a man on the street for $200. The information officers collected was forwarded to police in Nevada.

Other calls received from Dec. 16-23.

Dec. 17: A bank in the 1300 block of North Liberty Lake Road reported that $10,000 was mistakenly deposited into the wrong account. The account holder promptly withdrew the money and closed the account and did not respond to attempts by the bank to get it back. The case is under investigation.

Dec. 20: A harassment call was received from the 1400 block of North Ormond Road. A resident reported ongoing problems between two juveniles and said an anti-harassment order would be obtained.

Arrests: Police made five arrests for driving with a suspended license, two for driving while intoxicated and one for both driving with a suspended license and driving under the influence.

Citations: Officers handed out three citations for failure to show proof of liability insurance and four for speeding. Additional citations were given for expired vehicle registration and driving without lights when required.