Suspects in custody after a rash of car burglaries

By Lailani Upham

If a picture is worth a thousand words, they would include "property damage" and "jail time." Aside from the busted windows, the gas tank was sugared. (courtesy photo)

PABLO — Two teens have been taken into custody as suspects in recent car break-ins and home burglaries in the Pablo area, according to Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Chief of Police, Craige Couture.

The case has been turned over to Lake County Detective Mike Gehl. Gehl says the case is still ongoing and other suspects are still being investigated.

There are believed to be four juvenile suspects in on the robberies that are responsible for breaking into several vehicles parked throughout neighborhoods in Pablo during the early morning hours, according to CKST police.

The teens have been reported stealing numerous items of value from vehicles and homes. Reports of 'car hopping' have been coming in to the CSKT tribal police department and the Lake County Sheriff’s office between late June to mid-July.

Car hopping is a term used by teens to describe the act of moving from house to house in an attempt to find unlocked cars. If a car door is left unlocked, burglars can easily enter the vehicle, and take items of value. Using this method, the suspects remove iPods, GPS, DVD players purses, wallets, money, and more.

One resident from the Felsman housing area reported a dvd player, cd player and a purse taken out of her car Fourth of July weekend. The purse was later found with items dumped on the street a few blocks away.

It's all fun and games until someone goes to jail: the culprits smashed the front window and slashed the back tire. This was one of several incidences that may have included theft of personal property from unlocked vehicles and included at least one home where knives, guns and other items were stolen. (courtesy photo)

One week later the same resident from the Felsman housing area reported her car vandalized with shattered windows and sugar spilled down the gas tank. The incident was discovered when a neighbor heard a noise that sounded like gunshots around 4 a.m. on Friday, July 9. The resident’s neighbor said he jumped out of bed and looked out his windows and saw three teen boys standing around the vehicle. The owner noticed the damage when she had to leave for work at 6am. Three windows were shattered with what seemed to be a bat, she said. She also mentioned she is worried about the safety of her children.

Several break-ins had been reported in the past month. However, one residential family in the Felsman housing area reported their vehicles broken into in the latter part of June and again a week later during the Fourth of July weekend. The suspects left the doors open on the vehicles, leaving damage to the vehicles totaling up to $3,000, according to the owners insurance.

Another resident on the eastside of Highway 93 in Pablo reported their home broken into while they were gone to find guns, knives and ammo along with other items stolen. The home robbery has been linked to the teen suspects, according to Detective Gehl.

CSKT police department is advising folks to file police reports if their home or car has been broken into, according to CSKT Chief Couture. “Items are being recovered and if there is not a report on an item we can’t do anything with it,” he said. Couture advise people to get in the habit of keeping receipts and serial numbers of valuable items.

Detective Gehl said they will be making calls to the victims in the next couple days.

In the meantime law enforcement officials also want to remind people to keep their vehicles locked. The investigation has revealed that doors were left unlocked in nearly all of the cars that had been broken in to.

CSKT Law Enforcement and Lake County Detectives encourage citizens to call 911 when they see suspicious activity or suspicious people in their neighborhoods. For reports please call, CSKT tribal police at (406) 675-4700 or the Lake County dispatch at (406) 883-7301.