Sheriff's deputies arrest mail thieves

DAVENPORT — Two people were booked into the Lincoln County Jail following their arrests for alleged mail thefts Feb. 11.

Karalynn Solis, 35, and Leora Guery, 36, were both booked into the jail, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office reported.

As of press time Feb. 20, the pair remained in county lockup, the jail roster shows. Their bail and exact charges were not immediately available.

According to a report, a witness called county dispatch at approximately 2 p.m. that day after observing the duo acting suspicious north of the city.

“The reporting party advised dispatch that the occupants appeared to be going through mail boxes,” a press release said. “They were able to give a description of the vehicle with very good detail and descriptions of the occupants and activity witnessed.”

The caller followed the two and continued to provide information to the dispatcher, Jail Supervisor Lyle Hendrickson, according to the report. Deputies were dispatched to the area north of the city.

Deputies Kurt Cuzzetto, Gabe Gants and Jerad McLagan responded to the area, taking different routes to prevent the alleged mail thieves from eluding them.

Cuzzetto located their vehicle on state Highway 25 and followed it onto Harker Canyon Road and stopped the vehicle.

He arrested the couple and had their vehicle impounded, the report said.

Deputies sought, received and executed a search warrant, and found hundreds of pieces of mail in the vehicle, the report said.

“The mail was from various locations from throughout the state to include Yakima, Warden, Tri-Cities, Grand Coulee and Lincoln County,” the report said.

“The stolen mail includes tax forms, drivers licenses, credit cards and other personal mail.”

Deputies will be working on this case for several days and will notify victims and surrounding agencies affected by the crime spree, the report said.

Possible narcotics were also discovered, the report said, noting the alleged drugs will be tested at a crime lab.

“I was very impressed with the reporting party who did a great job of identifying the vehicle and suspects and kept dispatch notified step-by-step,” Sheriff Wade Magers said, crediting the deputies with teamwork that prevented the couple from escaping.

Hendrickson credited the witness for aiding in the arrests.

“As with all cases, victims are impacted, but these types of cases can cause significant personal impact to victims for an extended period of time. Potential stolen tax information, gift cards, driver’s licenses, credit cards and other items that can potentially lead to identity theft can create havoc for years,” Magers said.