Car ransacked, pickup stolen in related incidents ** update

UPDATE: The stolen pickup truck has been recovered. It was discovered west of Lincoln, in the trees near Highway 200 mile marker 64.

Lewis and Clark county deputy Sheriff Tony Galahan responded to a report of a stolen pickup truck in Lincoln Sunday evening, which appeared to be connected to a vehicle break in that same evening.

Just before 6 p.m., Blue sky Motel owner Earl Laroque heard a vehicle start up outside the building. He initially assumed it was a pickup belonging to a motel guest, but when he looked out the window, he saw it was actually someone gunning his 1972 Chevy Classic pickup.

LaRoque said the truck stalled in the road, but the thief got it going and headed west. LaRoque tried to follow it, but lost sight of it before he got out of town. He said he didn't get a good look at the person driving his truck.

The two-tone green and white pickup with a white topper was last seen near Blackfoot Valley Ranch Road. At press time, it had not yet been located, but Galahan said it only had about a quarter tank of gas in it when it was stolen.

LaRoque said the truck had about $400 worth of tools in it.

While investigating the truck theft, Galahan found a bag in the motel parking lot that appeared to have been dropped by the truck thief. He said it contained a GPS unit connected to a vehicle break-in at D&D Grocery.

Debbie Gasparovich, an employee at the store, discovered her car had been broken into and ransacked sometime before she left work at about 6:30 p.m. Sunday. The only thing that seemed to be missing was her GPS unit. Her car had been parked in the D&D parking lot along the west side of the building when it was broken into.

Galahan identified the GPS he found as Gasparovich's and returned it to her, but he said the bag contained other items that weren't hers, suggesting the possibility other vehicles had been raided as well.

Since Galahan discovered the GPS at the Blue Sky, it showed Gasparovich's car was ransacked earlier than 6 p.m., but she said she has no idea when it actually happened.

Both vehicles had been left unlocked at the time they were broken into.

For LaRoque, it was a case of bad timing. He said the pickup had been locked up for quite a long time, but he'd unlocked it to get some tools for a painting project he had to do and had just forgotten to go back out and lock it up.

Although leaving vehicles unlocked in Lincoln is fairly common for local residents, Galahan said people need to secure their vehicles to help prevent similar incidents. He also asked people to keep their eyes out for suspicious activity in town.

The Sheriff's Office is still investigating both incidents and Galahan is hoping video recorded by security cameras on Main Street businesses can provide a lead on a suspect.

Galahan asks anyone who may have seen LaRoque's pickup after it was stolen or may have information on its whereabouts to call the Lewis and Clark County sheriff's office at 406-442-7883. The pickup's license plate number is 5-13875B, it's missing the driver's side mirror and is outfitted with mag wheels. He suggested anyone who may have discovered items missing from their vehicles around that time to also call.

Other Thefts

The pair of vehicle break-ins aren't the only cases of theft around Lincoln recently.

At Friday's Government Day meeting, Lincoln Deputy Robert Rivera said there has been an uptick in burglaries in the area. One such incident involved a break in at a seasonal home on the far side of Rogers Pass. The suspects in that case were apprehended in Idaho.

Burglars also struck a house on the 200 block of North First Avenue in Lincoln, Dec. 21. Rivera said they broke into a garage and home and made off with power tools and a power washer. He said they have identified a suspect in Great Falls.

Rivera said seasonal homes in the area also appear to have been cased by potential burglars.

The owners of one such house were in Arizona and were alerted to movement near their home by a motion sensor on a wi-fi enabled security camera they'd installed. When they checked the video, they saw a person had been walking around outside the house and sent the video to the Sheriff's office.

He said it doesn't appear that locals have been involved in any of the cases.

Nevertheless, he said it's a good idea for people to invest in some sort of security, whether through a company or simply by installing inexpensive game or security cameras.