Stolen Trailer Recovered in Boise and Arrests Made Because of Community Involvement
By Miste Karlfeldt • July 31, 2023Disclaimer: This is a local story about a personal experience of the owner of the Idaho Dispatch, Miste Karlfeldt. The full details are reported here in first-person.
On July 25th in a neighborhood close to Boise Ave. and Broadway, my uniquely designed Rover cargo trailer containing camping gear and water play equipment was stolen.
A neighbor was able to verify through their motion sensitive cameras that it was taken some time between the hours of 12:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m.
I called the Boise Police Department that morning and received a report number from Officer Eric Floyd.
That evening I made a social media post, and the community went to work.
Around 7 p.m. on July 26th the tips started rolling in. The criminal, later discovered to be Robert Dale Wilson, was spotted at the Albertsons on Apple Rd. in a black GMC towing the stolen trailer. The pictures showed that the trailer was not plugged in, in order to have working taillights and blinkers. The driver side window also seemed to be broken out. While the vehicle had no visible license plates, it would be recognizable by the two bikes on top and the red stripe seen on the driver’s side in a video taken by a woman who soon shared it with her friend, Samuel Gardner.
Samuel Gardner quickly shared the videos and photos with me. I forwarded everything to Officer Floyd, called BPD non-emergency dispatch, and shared on social media. BPD sent an officer to the Albertsons, but the driver had already left the scene.
Around 9 p.m.pm on the same day, a friend sent this message to Tammy Kennedy who had shared the post in several places on social media.
I shared this new tip with the people who were actively helping to search for the stolen trailer, and Samuel Gardner responded instantly that he had a good idea of where to look, given the new details. By approximately 10:40 p.m. on July 26th, Samuel spotted Wilson and a woman (later discovered to be Chandra Mae Leeds) with the vehicle photographed just a few hours earlier and the stolen trailer located at the Sinclair gas station called On The Run located off exit 59a. He quickly notified BPD, who dispatched officers to the scene from the Boise airport. I headed to the gas station directly.
Samuel witnessed Wilson open the hood of the vehicle and start working on the brake lights and blinkers, along with securing the bikes. Samuel and I waited for BPD to arrive, but started getting concerned when Robert appeared to have success getting the brake lights and blinkers to work. Samuel called BPD. Dispatch informed Samuel that there was another call which was a “life or death situation,” and the officers had to be rerouted. We later discovered there was an officer involved shooting at that time.
I called ISP hoping to be able to get help before my stolen trailer drove away, They immediately dispatched officers to our location. The vehicle was driving away so Samuel tailed and I followed while remaining on the phone with ISP dispatch. I gave the details to dispatch as we headed east on I-84. The driver pulling the stolen cargo trailer pulled off on exit 61 at roughly 11:30 p.m. and stopped in the dark night just as three ISP troopers passed me and Samuel. ISP surrounded the vehicle. Leeds was quickly apprehended, but Wilson jumped over the guard rail and fled into the desert. Ada County deputies arrived and the search continued with the sheriff’s K-9 which tracked the suspect who had attempted to hide inside a sagebrush. Ultimately, Wilson was apprehended around midnight.
I was able to view the contents inside the cargo trailer and confirm that some of the items in the trailer belonged to me, but other items did not.
Idaho Dispatch reached out to Samuel Gardner for a comment about the experience. He said,
“I was born and raised in this valley. Our community has grown and changed in my 41 years as an Idahoan. I believe it is our duty to preserve the traditions, kindness, peace, and safety of our hometown. We need to be a self-accountable community. The initiative that myself and others took within the boundaries of the law led to the arrests of career criminals and likely saved our community from future violations and damages. I firmly believe that we need to take this kind of action to help protect ourselves and our neighbors.”
I would like to add my own thoughts on this as well,
“I am so grateful we live in a community that will take action when there is injustice. Boise has a limited number of police officers, and they are very busy with our growing city. They were even called away as they were headed to help us that night. It was the swift action of friends, family, and strangers that ultimately led ISP to the people who had my trailer. ISP troopers and Ada County deputies were amazing that night. To say that I was grateful and relieved when they arrived is an understatement.
Thank you to all who helped us. The trailer and contents are more than just stuff to us. It contains our camping gear and my children’s water play equipment which are tied to precious memories. It’s exciting to think that when we get our gear back and are able to use it again. We will have great stories to tell of their recovery.”
Who are these two who were driving away with the stolen trailer and other items?
Robert Dale Wilson, aka Robbie Wilson, has 28 cases when you search his name on www.mycourts.idaho.gov. He has been found guilty of everything from driving infractions to possession of a controlled substance.
In 2012 he was sentenced to 5 years in prison for possession of a controlled substance or use under the influence, but ultimately only served 101 days in jail. (CR-FE-2011-20538)
In 2021 he was arrested for Driving Without Privileges but by 2022 was sentenced to 32 days in jail for Driving Without Privileges and Contempt of Court. (CR01-21-31801)
Wilson has a pending case from April 2023 (CR01-23-12064) for Possession of a Controlled Substance, Resisting or Obstructing Officers, Drug Paraphernalia-Use or Possess With Intent to Use, and Failure to Appear. Wilson has been out of jail on $2,000 bond since May 17, 2023. According to the iCourt Portal he failed to appear for a hearing on May 30, 2023.
Wilson now adds Grand Theft by Receiving, Possessing, or Disposing of Stolen Property, Arrests & Seizures-Resisting or Obstructing Officers, and Drug Paraphernalia-Use or Possession With Intent to Use to his record for his arrest on July 27, 2023. Wilson’s bond is set for $10,000 and his next hearing is slated for Aug 4, 2023, at 8:30 am. (CR01-23-23006)
Chandra Mae Leeds has 31 cases on mycourts.idaho.gov. Leeds has several driving infractions including driving without a license and registration on several occasions.
In April 2004 Leeds was found guilty of Aggravated Battery and was found guilty of violating her probation in January 2006. (CR-FE-2003-1544)
In Aug 2020 she agreed to a plea for crimes committed in Aug 2019. She pleaded guilty to Petty Theft and Theft by Unauthorized Control or Transfer of Property with Intent of Depriving the Owner. She violated her probation. (CR01-19-34291)
In April 2022 Leeds pleaded guilty to Possession of Marijuana. (CR01-21-46929)
Leeds now adds her arrest for Grand Theft by Receiving, Possessing or Disposing of Stolen Property, etc and Drug Paraphernalia-Use or Possession With Intent to Use to her record. Like Wilson, Leeds bond is set for $10,000 and her next hearing is slated for Aug 4, 2023, at 8:30 am. (CR01-23-23005)
Feature graphic courtesy of SignCenter.com
Tags: ACSO, Ada County, Ada County Sheriff, Boise, Boise Police, BPD, Chandra Mae Leeds, Community, Crime, Grand Theft, Idaho State Police, ISP, Miste Karlfeldt, Robbie Wilson, Robert Dale Willson, Samuel Gardner, Social Media, Stolen Property, Tammy Kennedy
Glad they were caught. Disappointing that people think its okay to steal.
Jason Aldean would love this story.
Glad that this got resolved.
Now lets catch the thieves that stole the WH in 2020.
Citizen involvement, watching out for each other, happy ending to this story.