Pair Held In Theft, Chase

Two men were being held in jail Friday night after allegedly attempting to pickpocket wallets in a bar, attempting to steal a vehicle, then successfully stealing a car and eluding police on foot when the vehicle got stuck on a rock.

Details in the case were sketchy, said Spokane sheriff’s Inspector Dave Wiyrick, but he gave this preliminary account:

Around 2:36 p.m., reports came in about a man trying to steal wallets at the bar in the Doubletree Hotel on Sullivan in the Valley. Calls then reported that people were chasing a man from the hotel.

A short time later a man attempted to steal a van at a gas station where a woman was getting gas. The woman “physically removed” the man from the van and he fled, Wiyrick said.

Soon after, a car theft in progress was reported. A GMC Jimmy was stolen from 1013 N. Burns. A woman listening to her police scanner spotted the vehicle near a Liberty Lake shopping area. Deputies were in pursuit and chased the vehicle south to Molter and Henry, Wiyrick said. At that point, the vehicle left the road and soon became high-centered on a rock. Two men abandoned the car and fled, Wiyrick said.

Shortly after, a citizen reported seeing suspicious men in a back yard and another reported seeing them in a field. Deputies responded and arrested a 19-year-old and a 23-year-old on charges of auto theft and eluding officers. Deputies were still trying to identify the men late Friday. One man gave an alias.

Investigators believe the men were involved in all the incidents, Wiyrick said.