Store Worker Booked On Theft Charge

An employee at the ShopKo store on South Regal was arrested Saturday on suspicion of stealing several hundred dollars worth of merchandise.

The 17-year-old worker was arrested by a sheriff’s deputy after a security guard said he found the youth at an exit attempting to steal a bottle of liqueur, said Sheriff’s office spokesman Dave Reagan.

After interviewing the employee, the security guard determined that the employee was a suspect in other thefts, Reagan said. He escorted the teen to a place within the store where CDs had been stashed, apparently hidden for later theft, Reagan said.

After further investigation, the deputy and security officer found $800 worth of store merchandise - including four sets of two-way radios, a cordless telephone, a Sega Dreamcaster and six video game cartridges - in the suspect’s truck, Reagan said.

The teenager was arrested on a charge of second-degree theft and transported to the Spokane Juvenile Detention Center.

There, deputies searched the suspect and found two gasoline station credit cards reported stolen last fall, Reagan said.

The suspect was booked on the theft charge and for alleged possession of the two cards.

Guns stolen from Cheney home

A Cheney homeowner reported seven guns stolen on Monday.

The guns - four rifles and three shotguns - likely were stolen between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. from a locked cabinet, Reagan said.

Burglars apparently gained entry through a rear basement window, which was found broken, Reagan said.

Deputies have collected evidence and are investigating.