K9 unit tracks suspected vehicle prowler at Mead High School

A man police said broke into cars at Mead High School to pay for methamphetamine was arrested after a short foot pursuit on Friday, the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. John Heitman, 19, was booked into Spokane County Jail around 8:30 p.m. Friday, a few hours after a Mead student reported seeing him rooting around in her boyfriend’s car with a backpack. Heitman ran from the high school parking lot, scaling a fence before deputies boxed him into a backyard. Spokane County sheriff’s police dog Ekko helped take Heitman into custody after he refused to leave a hiding place beneath an outdoor table, according to the news release. Heitman told deputies he broke into cars to pay for a drug habit that costs him $300 every other day, according to the news release. He is being held on burglary and resisting arrest charges, in addition to two other felony warrants that include charges of stealing a motor vehicle and trafficking stolen property.