Bonner’s Ferry man commits suicide in Montana jail

MISSOULA – Authorities say a 22-year-old North Idaho man committed suicide in the Sanders County Detention Center shortly after he was captured by residents for allegedly robbing a convenience store in Trout Creek. August Whitedirt of Bonner’s Ferry reportedly held a knife to the throat of the store’s clerk Sunday night and left with an undisclosed amount of cash. Sheriff Gene Arnold said Whitedirt was chased by a group of residents and was restrained until authorities arrived. Authorities say Whitedirt was booked about 7:45 p.m. and was found hanging in the Thompson Falls detention center about an hour and a half later. He was pronounced dead at a Plains hospital. Sunday’s incident began about 7 p.m. with a report that three men had robbed the store. Two of the men left in an SUV with Idaho plates, eastbound on Montana 200 toward Thompson Falls. Undersheriff Rube Wrightsman said a deputy pulled them over but determined they were not aware that Whitedirt intended to rob the store. The men, who left Whitedirt behind when they realized what he was doing, were not charged.