Whitefish grinch steals Christmas

Liana West thought she was safe in a small town like Whitefish.

But while the single mother of three slept Thursday night, someone broke into her car and stole her children’s Christmas presents.

 “It’s pretty heartless that someone would do this around Christmas,” West said. “I’m not sure what I’m going to do for my kids.”

This was just one burglary in a rash of eight recent break-ins along Somers Avenue between approximately 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Friday. The thief stole everything from Christmas presents such as Barbie dolls to a Garmin personal navigation system to a duffel bag of gym clothes.

The suspect damaged some vehicles, but a majority of the cars burglarized were unlocked, according to Whitefish Assistant Police Chief Mike Ferda. Judging from footprints in the snow, it appears the lone suspect was on foot.

West had purchased her gifts just hours before they were stolen, leaving them overnight in her 1994 Jeep Grand Cherokee parked in the driveway because she was waiting for a good time to sneak the presents inside without her children seeing them.

She left the car unlocked because she felt safe in the neighborhood and figured it was so cold outside that no one would be out.

“They were smart enough to close the door softly,” she said. She never heard a thing.

The thief went through the glove box and center console, ignored the car’s stereo and took only the presents, still in Target bags.

The gifts, which included two Easy Bake Ovens and a Mermaid Barbie, were intended for her 7-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son.

“It’s really sad that someone would steal a little kid’s toy,” West said, “I’m surprised something like this would happen.”

She said she will be able to get some toys for her children’s Christmas, but the loss of these wasn’t insignificant.

The family has only lived in the area for 10 days and was looking forward to spending their first Christmas in the house, but West said she doesn’t know how that will go on now.

“I keep trying to think, if they were in a position to steal, maybe they needed it more,” she said, “but it would be really nice to recover this stuff for Christmas.”

Ferda said he and the police force are “pulling our hair out to figure out how we can stop this.” He encouraged victims to get in touch with pawn shops. Ferda also urged people to lock their vehicles and keep valuables hidden from sight.