A whiskey bottle could hold clues in a burglary at the Chapman Lake Resort near Cheney.

Someone cut a padlock from a gate overnight Wednesday and stole about $3,000 worth of tools and tool cabinets from an equipment trailer, the Spokane County Sheriff's Office said today.

The victim said the thief or thieves apparently used a shovel and ax to pry open the side door of the trailer before stealing  two Craftsman-brand tool boxes, one a red four or five-drawer unit and the other a smaller yellow unit.

But the thief left a bottle of whiskey in the front office area, and Deputy Todd Saunders seized it for fingerprint examination.

Several of the items had been moved closer to the door, indicating someone may have planned to make a return trip. Only one family currently lives at the resort.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Check at (509) 456-2233.

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