Thorstenson receives 10-year sentence after agreeing to plea deal

Lincoln County District Judge Matthew Cuffe sentenced a Libby man to 10 years behind bars Jan. 27 after he pleaded guilty to burglary in connection with a break-in on Lakeshore Drive in the fall.

Jeremy Charles Thorstenson, 35, must also pay about $6,304 in restitution. As part of the deal, prosecutors dropped a felony theft charge.

“I think it’s a just punishment,” Cuffe said. “It allows Mr. Thorstenson to get the help he needs and wants.”

Authorities arrested Thorstenson in Missoula County after a state game warden located and reported a stolen truck abandoned near Clinton. The vehicle was traced back to a Lakeshore Drive property owner, who subsequently discovered his cabin burglarized.

An investigation launched in Missoula County led authorities to uncover Thorstenson’s role in the auto theft via a state identification card found in detritus left by the abandoned truck and on surveillance footage at a nearby market, court documents said.

Still, sheriff’s office personnel in Missoula County came across Thorstenson nearly by accident, according to court documents. In an affidavit, Capt. Bill Burt described having to brake hard after a man walked in front of his agency vehicle during a patrol.

Only after asking if the man needed help did Burt recognize Thorstenson and arrest him, according to the affidavit.

Thorstenson eventually admitted guilt and told authorities that he and a woman also implicated in the theft and burglary had made plans to get to Mexico, court documents said.

Thorstenson initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but struck a deal with prosecutors in December.

He did not make a statement in court Jan. 27, but his attorney, Jessica Polan, told Cuffe that Thorstenson accepted the consequences of the crime.

“Jeremy wanted to take responsibility as soon as I met him,” she said.