On August 8th, the Chaffee County Communications Center received a call from the Monarch Mountain Ski Area of a Burglary.
Chaffee County Sheriff’s Office personnel responded to the ski area and contacted ski area personnel. They related that during the evening hours of August 7th a male, later identified as Johnathan Edward Lee, age 35, forced entry into the lodge and then damaged several interior doors by forcing entry. In the process Lee took numerous items from throughout the lodge and was seen exiting the property a few hours later. These activities were captured by video surveillance at the lodge.
With the assistance of the Salida Police Department Lee’s identity was confirmed and Lee was taken into custody. Lee was booked into the Chaffee County Detention Facility and charged with the following:
- 2nd Degree Burglary, Class 4 Felony
- 3rd Degree Burglary, Class 5 Felony
- Theft, (5k-20K), Class 5 Felony
- Criminal Mischief, Class 6 Felony
- Possession of a Controlled Substance, Class 4 Drug Felony.
Lee is being held on a $2500 cash bond.
Investigators were able to recover a majority of the items taken as the result of their investigation.
