Excitement at Cottonwood Hills Golf Course

We had a bit of excitement at Cottonwood Hills last Wednesday morning. 

If you are up to no good and wish to evade detection, I would suggest that wandering around a golf course bare footed at dawn is not the best strategy. And for God's sake, don't lose your keys!

A Billings man was arrested Wednesday morning after taking two water coolers from a golf course, an “unusual bag” and a dirt bike from a Norris Road residence and a fire extinguisher from a gravel pit.

According to court documents, Deputy Dane Vranish responded to a criminal trespass at the Cottonwood Hills Golf Club Wednesday morning. When Vranish arrived, he talked to a golf course employee.

The employee said saw a barefooted male wandering near the golf course. The wandering man appeared disoriented and claimed he was looking for his lost keys, court records state.

Law enforcement found the man, later identified as James Howard Crane, 34, near his vehicle at a nearby gravel pit.

Additional reports of burglaries and criminal trespass complaints at Norris Road residential addresses came in while deputies were investigating.

One reporting party said a man had taken an “unusual bag” from a building near his house. The victim said the bag’s contents were dumped outside the building. The same victim said his white Honda dirt bike was also missing.

Deputies found the missing dirt bike near Crane’s vehicle. They also located the odd bag in the Crane’s SUV and two water coolers.

Crane was taken to the Law and Justice Center to be interviewed. Crane waived his Miranda Rights and admitted that he trespassed on golf course property and stole two water coolers.

While Crane was being interviewed, another deputy took a report from the gravel pit. Gravel pit employees said someone broke into one of the structures on the property and caused $1,500 worth of damage. The burglar also stole a fire extinguisher.

Deputies found the fire extinguisher in Crane’s vehicle.

Crane was charged with burglary and taken to jail at the Gallatin County Detention Center. His bail was set at $10,000 by a Justice of the Peace Thursday morning.

I have it on good authority that when the Sheriff's Deputy arrived on scene he greeted the accused by name. 

The watering station on the 15th tee was sans water coolers from last Wednesday through yesterday. This morning, the stand was replenished with one old cooler, and one new, the old cooler's partner apparently having been retained as state's evidence. Here are the crime scenes. Crime does not pay!