The second of two 18-year-old Kalispell men accused in a string of Bigfork burglaries has turned himself in.

Unlike his codefendant, however, he has not been released from jail.

Shane Christensen — who showed up at the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office just before 1:30 p.m. Tuesday — appeared Wednesday afternoon in Flathead Justice Court for his initial hearing, during which Justice of the Peace Mark Sullivan chose to maintain his $25,000 bond.

Sullivan earlier had released Christensen’s codefendant, Severin Gislason, on informal house arrest. Gislason is charged with six counts of felony burglary and one count of felony deceptive practices; bond was set at $60,000.

Christensen is currently charged only with felony deceptive practices.

He initially was charged with the same seven felony charges, but those were amended down to the single felony on Feb. 25. Flathead County Deputy Attorney Kenneth Park said that was due to the challenge of proving his involvement in the burglaries.

Park indicated extra charges could be leveled against Christensen.

“There’s a pretty good chance this guy could end up with them,” Park said. “This is still being investigated.”

He added that the reason the burglary charges could be supported against Gislason was that the footprints left on the doors kicked in during the burglaries allegedly matched the tread pattern of Gislason’s shoes.

Gislason pleaded not guilty during Flathead District Court proceedings on March 6. His next hearing is set for June 11.

The duo are alleged to have burglarized Bigfork United Rentals, The Senior Center, Albiero Chiropractic, Waterstreet Co., Clayton’s Dentist Office and Nielsen Electric overnight Feb. 18.

Among the items stolen were cash drawers and a credit card, which was taken from the rental business. Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said the pair allegedly used that card to put $5,000 into one of their PayPal accounts and they then spent a further $3,000 to $4,000.

Curry said Wednesday that although Christensen turned himself in, the only thing he told deputies was that he would not talk about anything without a lawyer. He was subsequently booked into the Flathead County Dention Center.

If convicted of all seven charges, Gislason faces up to 130 years in the Montana State Prison as well as a fine of up to $350,000 as well as restitution. Christensen currently faces up to 10 years in the state prison and a fine of up to $50,000 if he is convicted of his single charge.

An arraignment hearing for Christensen is set for May 1.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at [email protected].