Convicted thief earns six-year stretch in state prison

A Kalispell man earned a six-year stint in Montana State Prison after allegedly getting caught stealing tools from a utility trailer just weeks after receiving a deferred sentence for felony theft.

Prosecutors initially brought Jesse Arthur Horst, 38, up on felony theft and criminal possession of dangerous drugs charges following his Oct. 30 arrest by Whitefish Police officers. They later agreed to drop the case if he was found in violation of a deferred sentence, which was handed down in Flathead County District Court on Sept. 15.

Tipped off by a River Lakes Parkway resident about 10:07 p.m., officers allegedly found Horst loading items from the trailer into his pickup truck, court documents said. Horst told officers he had permission to relocate the tools, though the trailer’s owners said they never gave him approval to do so, according to court documents.

Authorities estimated the value of the removed tools at more than $5,000, court documents said.

A subsequent search of Horst allegedly turned up about four grams of methamphetamine.

Prosecutors began the process of revoking Horst’s Sept. 15 sentence several days later. That case stemmed from the theft of an orange Chevrolet pickup truck in November 2021. Kalispell Police officers later located the truck with Horst inside of it, court documents said.

Following testimony on Jan. 26, Judge Dan Wilson deemed Horst in violation of the terms of his probation and ordered the deferred sentence revoked. He handed down a six-year sentence in state prison shortly afterward, giving Horst credit for a combination of time served and street time.