Posted: 8/20/03

Stolen vehicles, trailers found

Vehicles and trailers stolen in Forest Lake during the past week have been popping up in locations throughout the state. Some of the stolen property have been recovered without damage, but not all of the items escaped harm.

A 1996 Honda Accura stolen from 307 S. Lake St. on Aug. 14 is a good example of the latter. The car, valued by the owner as $9500, was found burned and stripped on Monday by police in St. Paul.

License plates belonging to the vehicle were missing, police said.

On Sunday, police in Goodhue County recovered a pickup truck and a trailer reported stolen from two businesses in Forest Lake.

Authorities recovered a 2002 Chevrolet Silverado that had ben stolen from Wally McCarthyís, 533 SW 19th St., sometime over the weekend. The truck was found near Red Wing with a stolen trailer.

The trailer was reported stolen on Aug. 15 from Wood Design, 908 SW 15th St. There was no apparent damage to the trailer or the truck, police said.

Community Helping Hand, 408 SW 15th St., on Aug. 14 reported the theft of its utility cargo trailer. The trailer was found undamaged in Aitkin County on Aug. 18.

City police have two other stolen auto reports:

ïA 1986 Toyota valued at $2000 was reported stolen from the parking lot at Village Apartments, 1007 SW Apartment Lane on Aug. 17.

ïA 1998 Chevrolet Suburban with approximate value of $20,000 was reported stolen on Aug. 14 from Koppy Motors, 23784 Lake Blvd.

Thefts, burglaries

Police in Forest Lake are also investigating theft and burglary reports.

A forced entry burglary was reported in the 7800 block of North Shore Circle N. on Monday resulting in the loss of a 27-inch color television, a DVD player and a computer. The daytime burglary was reported at 3:50 p.m.

A home owner in the 5100 block of 240th St. N. reported a daytime burglary on Aug. 15 that resulted in the loss of electronic equipment. Forced-entry to the home was not found.

Forest Lake Ford, 231 SW 19th St., reported the theft of two laptop computers from the dealership on Aug. 14. Value of the two computers was $3900.

Police assists

Police here provided assistance to other agencies during incidents last week.

On Monday, police received a call from the south side of First Lake where a femur bone was found in the water. The report was made at 9:45 p.m. and turned over to the Washington County Sheriffís Office.

Chief of Police David Schwartz said the investigation would determine if the bone was human and if there is any connection to a death or a missing person report. He said the find has some similarities to human remains found recently in Ramsey and Isanti counties.

Police here also assisted the Anoka County Sheriffís Office and police from Coon Rapids in the pursuit and arrest of a Maplewood man at 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 15.

According to police reports, Anton J. Bontrager, 28, fled police in Coon Rapids where he was wanted on a felony warrant. He was eventually caught in Scandia.

Police said the man led pursuers east on a motorcycle from Anoka County into Forest Lake on TH-97. The pursuit continued through some residential areas and the main business district before heading around the lakes on North Shore Trail and on to the Scandia.

Police here assisted with the arrest of Bontrager in Scandia.

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