Man wanted plane to visit father

HAYDEN - The 23-year-old Hayden man who allegedly attempted to steal a corporate jet at the Coeur d'Alene Airport planned on flying across the country with it.

Clyde C. Stemberg wanted to take the $20 million Challenger 600 to Massachusetts to see his father who is hospitalized with internal bleeding, a Kootenai County Sheriff's Office incident report said.

Stemberg is charged with attempted grand theft and three counts of burglary, all felonies, according to court documents.

The incident report said Stemberg was taking a flight lesson on Saturday, Sept. 21. Following the lesson, he slipped into a hangar where he stayed overnight. The next morning is when he allegedly tried to steal the plane.

He apparently had gone a long way toward taking off with the jet, but a worker at the airport spotted some suspicious behavior and confronted Stemberg.

He was working his way through the flight check-list when he was interrupted.

He first responded by claiming he was a mechanic working on some electrical problems in the craft. When his story started falling apart under questioning, he came clean about his intentions, the incident report said.

Stemberg was booked into Kootenai County jail before posting $50,000 bond. He returned to Innercept, a residential program located in Coeur d'Alene for struggling teens and young adults.

The plane was inspected and it was determined no damage was done to the plane.

Court documents said the plane is owned by Richard David Weinftein, 61, of Chesterfield, Mo.