Deputies apprehend burglary suspect

SANDPOINT — Bonner County sheriff’s deputies have apprehended a suspect in a rash of burglaries that have plagued Sagle residents.

Spencer Thomas James was arrested on an outstanding warrant and a grand theft charge after deputies discovered a trove of tools and property taken in recent burglaries, according to court documents.

James, who was squatting on an undeveloped piece of land off Eureka Road, was found to be in possession of $3,350 worth of equipment stolen from a Pend Oreille Valley Network tower site on Less Traveled Road on June 12, according to court documents.

Two large solar panels, a solar charge controller, a power-over-ethernet switch, a security camera, battery backup and core and WiFi routers were taken in the break-in, which caused an estimated $5,000 in damage, according to a probable cause affidavit.

That property was found in and around the pop-up camping trailer James was living in, the affidavit said.

Detective Matthew Wallace said in the affidavit that there was a “significant amount of tools, property and items which appeared to be from multiple burglaries reported to the sheriff’s office from the Sagle area over a five-month period.”

So far, James has only been implicated in the raid on the Pend Oreille Valley Network tower site, court documents indicate.

James, 31, made an initial appearance on Wednesday in Bonner County Magistrate Court via video link with the Bonner County Jail.

Records from the court hearing, however, were not immediately available on the iCourt database.

James is being held on a $50,000 warrant and a preliminary hearing on the felony theft charge is pending.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.