Johnson given suspended sentence

A Lake County man who admitted a role in the attempted theft of property from a self-storage facility in Eureka received a suspended two-year sentence Nov. 18.

Timothy Charles Johnson, 34, pleaded guilty to one felony count of attempted theft for his role in the 2018 crime. Known as an Alford plea, the agreement means Johnson accepts that prosecutors have enough evidence for a judge or jury to find him guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Authorities arrested Johnson after Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Bo Pitman began investigating possible tampering at the Ditch Water Storage in Eureka on Dec. 2, 2018. Meeting with the owners of several of the units, Pitman saw that the entrances to four were tampered with in various ways, court documents said.

After searching the units, the owners raised suspicions that a trespasser had rummaged through their stored belongings, documents said. At least one of the owners reported multiple items missing, including a saddle, Stetson hats and saddle blankets.

As detailed in his affidavit, Pitman suspected the culprit likely was after the two Harley-Davidson motorcycles and three dirt bikes stored across the various units. Working with one of the owners, he posted trail cameras before departing.

On Dec. 3, Pitman returned and noticed a white trailer parked by the storage units. Upon reviewing the footage, Pitman saw a Ford Explorer pulling the trailer into the area about 3:01 a.m. It was followed by a Chevrolet Silverado, Pitman wrote. For 14 minutes, a single male got out and stood by the storage units. Then the two vehicles left.

Identifying the trailer as belonging to a local hardware store, Pitman contacted the owners. They told him it contained “high-end meat grinding setups,” some weighing more than 800 pounds, and had been taken from their property, documents said.

With help from the Eureka Police Department, Pitman obtained overnight surveillance footage from a local gas station. The film caught a Ford Explorer and Chevy Silverado pulling into the store minutes apart. The occupants — two men and a woman — walked into a nearby casino, according to the affidavit.

The video shows the two vehicles leaving together at about 2:45 a.m., headed north, court documents said.

Armed with the footage, Pitman asked a colleague to pass along the photographs to authorities in Flathead County.

On Dec. 14, detectives there contacted the sheriff’s office, letting them know they had pulled over a vehicle similar to the one shown in the images. Court documents identified Johnson as the driver. His passenger, Lyann Davis, 26, of Kalispell, was arrested on outstanding felony warrants.

Interviewed by Flathead County detectives, Johnson allegedly admitted to his involvement in the Eureka crimes. He told authorities he began dating Davis several weeks prior to the theft of the trailer, according to court documents.

On Dec. 2, Davis asked him to take her gambling in Eureka, Johnson told detectives. En route, Davis said they needed to help someone, he recounted.

They then met with Davis’ brother, Joshua Miller, 25. According to Johnson, Davis and Miller left together — contradicting the video footage — and returned with the trailer. From there, the trio headed to the storage facility, Johnson told authorities.

When Miller noticed someone had changed the locks on the storage units, Johnson said, he decided they should leave.

Lincoln County authorities initially charged Johnson with misdemeanor criminal trespass, and felony theft and attempted theft. He pleaded not guilty to the charges, but reached an agreement after his case was consolidated with those facing Miller and Davis.