Man charged after he allegedly broke into dealership, stole vehicle and keys

IDAHO FALLS — A 29-year-old man is facing multiple felony charges after he allegedly broke into a car dealership, stole keys, and took off in a vehicle that didn’t belong to him.

The incident happened in 2021, but a criminal case was not filed until 2022. Skylar Reid Heaton had an initial appearance in court on Wednesday.

According to an affidavit of probable cause filed by the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a car dealership off Holmes Avenue in May 2021 for a report of a possible burglary in progress.

The owner said his motion camera showed some windows were broken at the business, and he heard loud sounds, documents said.

When a deputy arrived, she observed a black Chevrolet Silverado with dealership tags accelerate out of the business. It was later believed to be driven by Heaton, court documents said.

The deputy turned around and activated her emergency lights and siren. The truck was driving 75 to 80 mph south on Holmes and would not stop, documents said. The pursuit was called off shortly after no other units were in the area to intercept.

A deputy went to the business and swept the area. The deputy found a blue Pontiac parked in front of the business with the driver’s door wide open. The vehicle had a crowbar sitting in the front seat. Inside the blue Pontiac, there were different items found, like a pry bar, a car stereo, a black face mask, a black hat, a butane torch and a folding knife.

The front door of the business was also open and had pry marks on the door and frame, which were believed to be from the crowbar sitting in the Pontiac, documents said.

Nobody was inside the business. More deputies arrived on the scene and conducted a perimeter search. Inside the business, there were several keys left out on desks. One of the desks appeared to have been gone through.

The owner of the business came to the scene and provided photos of the stolen truck. There were a set of keys for two different vehicles that were missing from the business. One vehicle was found with the door open and running. The other vehicle had the door open, and the keys were on the floorboard. There was also a Mike’s Hard Lemonade in the center cup holder.

There were surveillance pictures of the suspect that was given to deputies. It showed a man with a grey short sleeve shirt with an American flag decal, which appeared to be the Under Armour brand.

Later that day, deputies were advised by Bingham County dispatch that they had located the stolen truck and got into a pursuit with it. Law enforcement took Heaton into custody. Inside the truck, there was an Under Armour shirt with the flag decal, which was the same shirt that was found in surveillance from the business earlier.

Heaton was the only person in the truck at the time, and there were multiple dealer keys in the truck. The truck suffered a blown motor which could cost $10,000 or more, documents said.

Heaton was charged with four felonies, including fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, grand theft, burglary, and malicious injury to property.

Though Heaton has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.

He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on April 5 at 1 p.m. at the Bonneville County courthouse.