$30,000 In Stolen Property Recovered; Two Arrested

Thousands of dollars in stolen property have been recovered, and two Twin Lakes, Idaho, residents have been arrested in connection with numerous burglaries in Kootenai County - including the burgling of a judge’s cabin.

Kootenai County sheriff’s officials said they expect more arrests.

Investigators arrested Richard T. Pierce, 23, and a 17-year-old juvenile male last week on charges of burglary and grand theft.

At least $30,000 in stolen property has been recovered, including five snowmobiles, a trailer, guns, tools, televisions, videocassette recorders and jewelry, said sheriff’s Lt. Nile Shirley.

The items appear to have been taken in burglaries of several cabins on the south side of Lower Twin Lake as well as in burglaries in other parts of Kootenai County and the city of Coeur d’Alene, Shirley said.

First District Judge Gary Haman discovered on Jan. 26 that his Twin Lakes cabin had been burglarized - along with several of his neighbors’. The thieves had ransacked the judge’s cabin and took two chain saws, a VCR, a compact disc player and a battery charger - a loss totaling $1,170, according to a sheriff’s report.

Because there are no roads to the cabins, investigators suspect that burglars snowmobiled across the frozen lake to get to the vacation homes.

Shirley said investigators were helped in recovering stolen items by concerned citizens and the parents of some youths. The parents told investigators that it appeared their children had some things that didn’t belong to them, Shirley said.

Sheriff’s officials are trying to locate the owners of a toolbox, approximately 6 feet long, with wheels, that was recovered among the stolen property. The letters “PCS” are printed on the side. Anyone who believes the toolbox may be theirs should call the Sheriff’s Department at (208) 664-1511.

, DataTimes