Suspect linked to missing woman imprisoned

SANDPOINT — A Spokane man linked to the disappearance of a Montana woman was sentenced to up to four years in prison for unlawfully possessing firearms.

Danny Harold Neep will have to serve at least two years of the term before he can be considered for release onto probation, according to 1st District Court records.

Neep, 61, is accused of unlawfully possessing a 20-guage shotgun and a .22-caliber rifle when he was stopped by U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer in September of last year. Neep’s right to possess firearms were dimmed out due to prior felony convictions for forgery and unlawful weapon possession in California, according to court records. The guns were discovered amid a search for Mirissa Serrano in the Coeur d’Alene Mountains on the southeast side of Lake Pend Oreille.

Bonner County authorities have refused to elaborate on the disappearance of Serrano, although Chief Deputy Prosecutor Shane Greenbank has said Neep was the last person to see the 27-year-old woman who had been residing in Montana. Serrano’s family members have been vocal on social media that Neep was involved in her disappearance and possible death.

Serrano is not listed as a missing person in the states of Idaho, Washington and Montana, an indication that she is believed to be dead.

Neep has not been charged in connection with Serrano’s disappearance.

The day after she was last seen, authorities conducted ground and air searches in the vicinity of U.S. Forest Service Road No. 278, a remote mountain road overlooking the lake. Greenbank said in May that deep snowpack in the mountains was impeding the search for Serrano.

Judge Barbara Buchanan imposed concurrent two- to four-year prison terms for the weapons violations, court records indicate. Neep was also given credit for 155 days of pretrial incarceration.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.