Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
DAVENPORT — A Spokane man is facing charges after deputies recovered a stolen vehicle and linked it to him through evidence found inside and witness accounts.
Dathan Spurgeon Miller, 36, has been charged with possession of a stolen vehicle after Lincoln County deputies discovered a white 1993 Chevrolet pickup abandoned in a ditch along Sunset Highway on December 20, 2024.
The truck, which had been reported stolen from Spokane on November 9, was partially blocking the roadway when authorities arrived.
Miller did not appear for his arraignment hearing in Lincoln County Superior Court on Tuesday, Feb. 25. As a result, a warrant to find and arrest Miller will be issued with a $5,000 bond.
According to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, a routine vehicle license plate check revealed discrepancies. The plate expired in 2012 and was registered to a different vehicle—a 1978 cab-over trailer. A VIN check confirmed that the pickup was registered to Michael S. Beers of Spokane Valley and had been reported stolen.
According to court records, upon searching the vehicle, deputies found a gray storage bin in the back seat containing a computer hard drive, a flat-screen monitor, and a camouflage zippered pouch.
Court records show that inside the pouch, deputies discovered a wristband bearing Miller’s name, which was later identified as possibly belonging to the Department of Corrections. Additional items in the truck, including mail and a coat, belonged to Beers, the truck’s registered owner.
Further investigation led deputies to 506 Main Street in Davenport, where Miller was known to frequent.
Multiple witnesses, including neighbors with security cameras, reported seeing Miller working on the stolen truck in front of the residence for several days before law enforcement discovered it. Security footage showed the vehicle parked at the location since December 11, with the last sighting on December 19.
Authorities secured a search warrant for the residence, executing it on December 28 with the assistance of multiple deputies.
According to the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office, during the search, officers encountered Crystal Enriquez, 43, and Jennifer Vanorman, 37, both of whom denied knowledge of Miller’s whereabouts. However, Vanorman allegedly admitted that Miller had brought the truck to the residence and later claimed it had run out of gas near a weigh station on State Route 2.
Inside the residence, deputies found a large quantity of laptops, laptop hard drives, and various power tools, items similar to those discovered in the stolen truck.
A Washington state driver’s license belonging to Hayley J. Baughman, 30, was also found in Vanorman’s room. Attempts to contact Baughman regarding the ID have been unsuccessful, and the document has been placed into evidence for safekeeping.
Olivia Harnack is the award-winning managing editor/photographer/videographer/columnist at the Lincoln County Record-Times, with offices in both Davenport and Odessa, Wash. She is a University of Idaho graduate and a U.S. Army National Guardsman.
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