Three charged in $12,000 residential burglary

Two teenagers and a 20-year-old man were charged Monday in connection with a residential burglary in October which cost the victims close to $12,000 in cash and other items.

Hearings are Wednesday in East Fork Justice Court for Richard Eernisse, 20, of Smith Valley, and Lynsey Fecteau, 18.

Eernisse was charged with burglary and conspiracy. Fecteau was charged with possession of stolen property.

Eernisse is in jail on $15,000 cash bail. Fecteau's bail is $10,000 cash.

An 18-year-old is being adjudicated as a juvenile because he was 17 when the alleged burglary occurred Oct. 9 at a residence on Kim Place in the Johnson Lane area.

The homeowner told deputies he and his family left on vacation Oct. 3 and returned Oct. 12 to discover someone had entered the residence. Nearly $10,000 had been stolen with checks made out to the family business.

A neighbor told the homeowners that there had been a large juvenile party at the house while they were gone. According to reports, the party was held to cover up the burglary, so a guest could be blamed for the theft instead of the suspects.

Eernisse was accused of entering a crawl space to remove the money from a safe. According to reports, Fecteau distributed the money, but was not accused of taking part in the burglary.

The suspects reportedly told investigators they had spent the money on clothing, marijuana, Ecstasy, video games, and a PlayStation.