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Man accused of 'injuring jail' after felony arrest

KAYE THORNBRUGH | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 years, 5 months AGO
by KAYE THORNBRUGH
Kaye Thornbrugh is a second-generation Kootenai County resident who has been with the Coeur d’Alene Press for six years. She primarily covers Kootenai County’s government, as well as law enforcement, the legal system and North Idaho College. | June 4, 2021 1:00 AM

DALTON GARDENS — Police said a man flooded his jail cell after he was arrested for allegedly stealing a car from a gas station and then unlawfully entering a home.

Aaron V. Doney, 32, of Coeur d’Alene, is charged with grand theft, burglary and possession of a stolen vehicle, all felonies.

He is also charged with unlawful entry and possession of drug paraphernalia, both misdemeanors.

Deputies with the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office responded May 28 to a report of a vehicle theft at a Dalton Gardens gas station.

At the scene, a man told police he had parked a 2021 Chevy Silverado by the gas pumps and walked in the store when an unknown person got in the truck and drove away.

As police tracked the vehicle’s location, they received a report of an unlawful entry at a residence about five miles away from the gas station. The suspect’s vehicle matched the description of the stolen truck.

Deputies responded to the residence, where a man, later identified as Doney, sat in the driver’s seat of a Chevy Silverado.

The truck was confirmed to be the missing vehicle.

The homeowner told police she was downstairs when she heard a noise in another area of the house.

She said she found Doney upstairs. He allegedly entered the residence through an unlocked door.

Doney reportedly got back in the truck after the homeowner confronted him and remained there until law enforcement arrived.

A search of the vehicle allegedly yielded drug paraphernalia.

Police arrested Doney at the scene.

Jail staff had reportedly placed a sheet over the window to Doney’s cell on Monday to prevent him from looking at other inmates who were being booked.

Doney allegedly damaged a sprinkler head for the fire suppression system within the cell.

The resulting water flow flooded Doney’s cell, as well as the booking and prebooking areas and a nearby hall, authorities say.

Doney was charged with injuring jails, a felony.

A judge ordered that Doney be held on $75,000 bail for charges related to the stolen truck.

He is being held on an additional $25,000 bail for the injuring jails charge.

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