Don't drink and steal

An Osburn man initially arrested Monday for DUI was later booked into Kootenai County jail on multiple charges of burglary and theft.

Jamie L. Hill, 38, was arrested a short time after sheriff’s deputies responded to a 1 a.m. call of a residential burglary in progress in the 12000 block of south Tamarack Ridge Road in Cataldo.

The homeowner reported he was awakened by his dogs barking and then saw a man standing in his home office, attempting to unplug electronics. The homeowner told deputies the man said he was looking for his cousin and then left the house and drove away in a white, Range Rover-style SUV.

As deputies were responding to the initial call from the homeowner, they observed a white Land Rover Discovery parked at the Dumpsters on Canyon Road and Highway 3.

Hill was subsequently arrested for DUI and driving on a suspended license. Deputies reportedly found medication belonging to the homeowner in Hill’s vehicle. During the impound of the vehicle, they also found a purse and cellphone belonging to another alleged victim who lives in the 13000 block of south Tamarack Ridge Road. When contacted, the owner of the purse and cellphone told investigators the items were last seen sitting on a chair in her home before she went to bed for the night.

Hill was booked into the Kootenai County jail on two counts of burglary, grand theft, petit theft, seven counts of criminal possession of a financial transaction card and unlawful possession of prescription medications in addition to the driving charges.

Hill has a lengthy criminal history, with multiple convictions, for similar crimes in Shoshone County.

The sheriff’s office is seeking assistance from other residents in the Cataldo area who may also have been victimized by Hill. Residents are encouraged to take a close inventory of their property and contact the sheriff’s office if they believe they are missing property.