Burglary suspect arrested

Flathead County Sheriff's Office detectives arrested a man they suspect of burglarizing three homes last weekend and attempting to get into more.

Curtis Foster Jr., 27, was arrested on a probation violation Wednesday. He has been previously convicted of burglary and theft.

Two homes in Bigfork and one near Columbia Falls were broken into over the weekend, according to sheriff's detective Paul Lebert. The intruder kicked in doors of homes that appeared to be empty, Lebert said.

"Locks didn't matter," he said.

The burglar took computers, flat-screen televisions, silver bars and guns, among other property.

At one of the homes, a neighbor saw a strange vehicle in the driveway and called the victim's son. He arrived and got a good description of the vehicle that was leaving.

Detectives used that description, including a car-lot sticker on the vehicle, to trace it to Foster. They showed the witness a photo lineup and he picked out Foster, Lebert said.

Officers found Foster at the Adult Probation and Parole Department. When they searched his vehicle, they found stolen property, Lebert said.

He's certain that if Foster hadn't been arrested, more homes would have been burglarized.

"He would have continued, without a doubt," Lebert said.

Foster said burglaries are his only skill, Lebert said.

Residents can discourage burglars by making sure their homes "look like they're being lived in."

That means picking up mail and newspapers before they collect, shoveling snow and raking leaves out of driveways, and leaving lights on.

People who are away from home should ask a trusted neighbor or friend to do that for them, Lebert said.

"Most of our crooks are opportunistic," said detective Glen Fulton. They will more likely try to enter a house that looks vacant than one that appears to be occupied.