Eagle Lake Man Charged With Stealing Several Vehicles

Aroostook County Sheriff's Deputies and State Troopers worked throughout the day Sunday to recover five stolen vehicles and have charged an Eagle Lake man in connection with the thefts.  

The Sheriff’s Office received a report just before 7:00 a.m. Sunday from a resident on Fox Hill Road in Portage that a Toyota Corolla had been taken from their driveway, according to Sheriff Darrell Crandall.  At the same time, State Police were responding to a reported vehicle theft in Eagle Lake.

At 7:30 a.m. the Sheriff's Office received a report of a stolen Toyota Camry on the State Road in Castle Hill.   Later in the day, a resident on the Portage Road in Portage reported a Nissan Pathfinder stolen, Crandall said.

Deputy Sheriff Chad Foley and Trooper Adam Stoutamyer began working together on the investigation and recovered a total of five stolen vehicles by mid-afternoon.  Witness reports helped the officers identify a suspect, 41-year-old Thomas Klinger of Eagle Lake.

Police believe that Klinger took the first vehicle in Eagle Lake and continued to take vehicles between Eagle Lake and Castle Hill.  He then reversed direction and commandeered vehicles to get back home, where he was found and charged.

No one was injured and only one of the vehicles sustained any damage, Crandall said. It is believed that all of the vehicles were unlocked and the keys were in the ignition when they were taken.

The Sheriff’s Office charged Klinger with three counts of Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle.  Maine State Police have also filed charges.  Sheriff Crandall said the case will be turned over to the District Attorney’s Office for review.