A thief made off with three guns after stealing a minivan from a Mexican food restaurant in downtown Kalispell Monday night and driving it through the front doors of Frontier Guns and Ammo in Evergreen.

Store employee Bruce Lan said the crime happened at 4 a.m. on Monday.

He said the culprit wasn’t able to pocket more guns because a Flathead County Sheriff’s deputy arrived within minutes to respond to an alarm call.

After taking three handguns worth $1,500, the suspect took off through the back door and left the stolen vehicle behind.

“We were up and running on Tuesday,” Lan said. “We had property damage to counters and our carpet was ripped to shreds. We are still picking up from that and finding glass in the carpet.”

Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said the vehicle was reported stolen earlier that day. It is unknown whether the crime is the work of a single individual or more than one person.

Curry said his department has some leads in the case but no one had been arrested as of Wednesday afternoon.

Anyone with information in the case can call Flathead County Sheriff’s Dispatch at 406-758-5610.

Reporter Megan Strickland may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at [email protected].