Wild chase with a stolen boat

Two men are in custody in connection with the June theft of a $100,000 boat after a Tuesday morning pursuit involving a vehicle towing the vessel.

“Deputies, about 5 o’clock yesterday [Tuesday] morning, did find the boat going down the highway on a trailer,” Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said on Wednesday.

Flathead deputies had been working closely with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office on the investigation. Curry said that on Monday they received a tip that the stolen boat might be moved.

Law officers spotted the boat Tuesday morning as it was being towed down Montana 28 near Niarada behind a pickup truck.

Refusing to pull over, the suspects fled. Confronted by spike strips set up on Montana 28, they eventually went off-road near Elmo — trailer and all.

“They were pursued into the mountains,” Curry said.

The chase eventually would involve the Montana Highway Patrol, Flathead and Lake County deputies, members of Tribal Fish and Game, Tribal Law and Order and the Two Bear Air helicopter.

At one point, according to Lake County Sheriff Don Bell, the truck turned off the road into a field. The stolen boat became detached from the truck, which continued across the field, through fences and down a power-line access road.

When the truck got high-centered, the two men inside fled on foot.

The subsequent search involved a variety of officers throughout the Big Arm area, knocking on doors and recommending that residents lock their doors and take their keys out of their cars, Bell said.

Around noon, a local resident checking on his fields spotted two men matching the description of the wanted suspects and called police.

Authorities arrested 30-year-old Brandon Joseph Jeppesen of Polson and 20-year-old Ty Christian Butler of Dixon.

Jeppesen and Butler and being held on preliminary charges of felony theft and accountability to felony theft, respectively. Those could change when Flathead County prosecutors bring formal charges.

The boat was stolen from Lakeside Marina in June. It was trailered on dry land at the time. Authorities believe that the thieves simply connected to the trailer and drove away.

Weeks ago, pieces from the boat started popping up in Polson. Curry said they were in personal possession rather than in pawn shops, and the Polson Police Department helped to serve search warrants.

Curry said the boat suffered extensive damage, including the various parts that had been stripped.

Both men are being held in the Flathead County Detention Center. They will have initial court appearances after formal charges are filed.

Reporter Michelle Lovato of the Lake County Leader contributed to this story.

Reporter Matt Hudson may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at mhudson@dailyinterlake.com.