Warm Weather Brings Theft Spree to Western Montana, Detectives Investigating Multiple Cases

Warm weather has triggered a bit of crime spree in western Montana. Paige Pavalone says there has been a notable spike in the number of robberies. On Monday night, someone absconded with nearly six thousand dollars from the Ice Cream Place in Seely Lake.

"A safe that was recently purchased by the business was stolen," Pavalone said. "Inside of that safe was about 4,000 dollars worth of cash. Within that safe were separate envelopes for the employees with tip money, a lot of tip money. In addition to the safe being stolen with several thousand dollars, there were also three jars with additional tip money that were also stolen."

Over the past few days there have been three reported incidents of theft or attempted theft in the west Missoula area, including the theft of a motorcycle on Calistoga Lane. At the Wingate, someone attempted unsuccessfully to break into a storage facility. In another instance, an employee at a restaurant in the Wye was videotaped stealing several hundred dollars from the cash register.

Any information about these cases can be reported to crime stoppers at 721-4444.