Jail suicide victim ID'd

An inmate who committed suicide at the Lincoln County Detention Center on Aug. 30 has been identified as an Alaska man.

The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release Thursday that Robert H. Stalie, 55, died in the jail incident.

Stalie was last known to be living in Anchorage, Alaska.

Stalie was arrested in Libby on Aug. 30 on charges of misdemeanor theft, possession of dangerous drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia. He also had a $10,000 felony theft arrest warrant out of Oregon.

Stalie was booked into the detention center at 3:38 p.m. that day and committed suicide around 6 p.m.

Lincoln County officers said that there was no indication Stalie was suicidal during the arrest or booking process.

An autopsy at the Montana State Crime Lab concluded that the cause of death was hanging. The Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office did not yet have results from a toxicology report.

The State Division of Criminal Investigation is continuing an investigation at the request of the Sheriff’s Office.

An incident report from the Sheriff’s Office shows that Libby Police took a call at 2:49 p.m. on Aug. 30 from a Libby Sports employee who said a “tall, thin, older male” wearing a fedora, plaid shirt and accompanied by a golden retriever had stolen several items and tried to return them for cash. Officers located and arrested Stalie about a half-hour later.

The Western News in Libby contributed to this story.