Two jailed in trailer theft case

SANDPOINT — Two Bonner County residents made their initial court appearances for allegedly stealing a local construction company’s trailer earlier this week.

Nicholas William Shuff and Tiffany Faith Mistelski are charged with grand theft by possession of stolen property.

Mistelski appeared in Bonner County Magistrate Court via video link with the Bonner County Jail. Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor Roger Hanlon recommended a $5,000 for the protection of society.

“Based on the allegations, it’s reasonable to conclude that the only income she would have is what she generates from stealing from others and then selling the property,” Hanlon said.

Judge Lori Meulenberg set Mistelski’s bail at $2,000 and appointed a public defender to represent her.

Shuff personally appeared in court during a pretrial conference in a pending drug possession case. Court records from that hearing were not immediately available on Friday.

The trailer was stolen on Wednesday from the Starr Lane area of Ponderay. The trailer’s owner, Harlicker Construction, posted a message to social media on Thursday reporting that the culprits had been apprehended.

Court documents related to the trailer theft were not available because Bonner County’s electronic courts database, the only way in which documents can be viewed, was mostly inoperable on Friday.

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