In brief: Costco jewelry stolen in overnight burglary

A “significant amount” of jewelry was stolen from the Costco store on North Division Street sometime during the night Tuesday, Spokane police confirmed Thursday.

Officers responded to a call from an employee of the store around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday, police spokeswoman Monique Cotton said. It appears the burglar entered the building from a rear entrance and smashed the jewelry display case. The store alarm apparently wasn’t triggered. An employee discovered the damage, saw jewelry was missing and immediately called police, Cotton said.

Thursday morning, several display cases were still empty of jewelry. Store officials confirmed a nighttime incident had occurred. Police would not disclose the value of the jewelry taken.

An executive with Costco’s corporate office in Issaquah, Wash., declined to comment on the incident because of the ongoing police investigation.

Detectives are reviewing surveillance tapes in search of a suspect, Cotton said.

Kip Hill

Rape suspect pleads guilty to lesser charge

A former Washington State University faculty member accused of raping an underage female has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.

Andrew Appleton, 51, pleaded guilty to felony injury of a child Tuesday and faces up to 10 years in prison and $50,000 in restitution at his sentencing next month, said Michelle Evans, Latah County senior deputy prosecuting attorney. He was arrested in September 2012 and originally faced charges of felony rape of a child, which is punishable up to life in prison.

Evans would not provide details of how the plea deal was reached, only saying it was a “negotiated plea agreement.” Appleton’s lawyer, Tim Gresback, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Appleton is accused of having a relationship with a teenage girl in his care and having sex with her since 2010, when she was 16. According to police reports, Appleton said he fell “in love” with the victim.

Appleton taught in WSU’s Department of Political Science. He was fired from the university following the charges.

Kaitlin Gillespie

Moran Prairie STCU branch robbed

A Spokane Teachers Credit Union branch in Moran Prairie was robbed around 12:20 p.m. Thursday, a credit union spokesman said.

The branch was closed during the investigation.

No one was hurt in the incident. The branch opened last year. 

Staff report