Man arrested for allegedly stealing cars after twice evading police pursuit

POCATELLO — A Chubbuck man faces numerous charges after police say he stole multiple cars and attempted to use credit cards he found inside the stolen cars.

Christian Lee McBee, 25, has been charged with 12 felonies, including four counts of grand theft and one count of burglary, court records show.

Sept. 22

Pocatello police received a call around 10 a.m. on Sept. 22 reporting a vehicle stolen from the Mink Creek area, according to an affidavit of probable cause. The owner of the vehicle told officers that his wallet and cell phone had been inside the 2022 Subaru Outback when it was taken.

The owner provided officers with GPS pings for both the Subaru and the cell phone, both of which showed to be located near Idaho Highway 30 and North Philbin Road.

Officers went to the location provided by the owner and found the Outback parked near a berm off the roadway.

They noted that the vehicle was “intact,” and brought the owner to further search. During that search, the owner discovered that the phone and wallet were missing.

While canvassing the area, officers discovered that a man seen driving the stolen Subaru had attempted to use a credit card belonging to the car’s owner at two gas stations.

Officers reviewed surveillance footage from one of the gas stations and confirmed the vehicle used was the one reported stolen, but could not identify the man driving it.

Sept. 27

It took five days to receive surveillance from the other gas station. When the manager of the second station contacted police to inform them she had received the video, she told the officers that she believed the man involved to be McBee, who she said had been arrested the day before.

Officers compared images of the man to a booking photo of McBee and determined him to be the man in the video driving a stolen vehicle and using a stolen bank card.

Sept. 18

McBee was arrested in connection to a vehicle theft that occurred four days before the Subaru was reported stolen.

Officers were informed that a 1996 Jeep Cherokee had been stolen from the Idaho State University campus around 2 p.m. A short time later, a patrolling officer saw a Jeep matching the description provided and attempted a traffic stop near the intersection of Arthur Avenue and West Center Street.

The Jeep sped away and, according to the affidavit, officers did not pursue it due to the high speed it was traveling in a busy area.

As they continued to search for the Jeep, officers saw a Jeep similar to the one reported stolen around 3 p.m. in the same area. This time, officers noted in reports that the driver’s side of the Jeep appeared to be freshly spray-painted.

Officers once again attempted a traffic stop, and once again the Jeep sped away at speeds officers deemed to be too dangerous for pursuit.

A short time later, one of the officers involved in the pursuit was flagged down by a resident who told the officer they had seen a Jeep driving recklessly in the area of Belmont Street.

Officers went to Belmont Street and found the Jeep parked on the 800 block.

When they approached the Jeep, officers found a woman they later identified as 33-year-old Stevie Varela in the driver’s seat. According to the affidavit, Varela appeared intoxicated.

Officers requested she take a field sobriety test. When she refused, they demanded she get out of the car for arrest.

As she exited the Jeep, Varela allegedly said “sorry” multiple times before requesting officers retrieve her wallet for her.

Officers found a wallet inside the Jeep containing three different driver’s licenses — none of which belonged to Varela. The wallet also contained bank cards, social security cards and a small baggie of what officers believed to be meth.

While preparing Varela for transport to Bannock County Jail, officers were once again flagged down by a resident who informed them that a man had been driving the Jeep. The resident said that the man got out of the Jeep just before officers arrived and was walking south on 5th Avenue.

An officer on a motorcycle found a man matching a description provided by the witness walking down South 5th Avenue and approached the man. When the man saw the officer, he allegedly jumped a fence into a yard and ran.

He was able to escape but was identified as McBee by the motorcycle officer.

McBee had been cited by Chubbuck police on Sept. 1 for petty theft and arrested for resisting and obstructing. He spent 12 days in Bannock County Jail and was released after paying $157.50 in fees and fines.

He was later found and arrested on Sept. 26 for his connection to the Jeep theft and the police chase.

McBee faces felony charges of burglary, possession of a stolen vehicle, attempting to flee officers, possession of a controlled substance, four counts of grand theft and three counts of possessing a stolen bank card.

Varela has been charged with a felony for possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanors for driving under the influence and attempting to flee an officer.

Though McBee and Varela have been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean they committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.

If they are found guilty, McBee could face up to 104 years and six months in prison and Varela could face up to nine years.

McBee is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing before Magistrate Judge David Hooste on Oct. 12. Varela waived her right to a preliminary hearing and has yet to be scheduled for her district court arraignment.