Employee arrested after allegedly stealing over $5,000 in auto parts

IDAHO FALLS – A 23-year-old man was arrested after he allegedly stole over $5,000 worth of equipment from his workplace.

Garrett John Bell was charged with one count of felony grand theft.

On Thursday, around 11:20 a.m., Officer Matthew Rosales with the Idaho Falls Police Department was dispatched to O’Reilly’s Auto Parts on North Woodruff Avenue after a report of a theft.

When he arrived, the manager of the store told him that an employee, identified as Bell, had stolen over $5,000 worth of items from the store.

The officer made contact with Bell, who had reportedly filled out a statement form with the company confirming that he had stolen four car batteries, an unknown branded scanner and an Autel scanner, totaling the value of stolen items at $5,768.48.

Bell was then arrested and taken to the Bonneville County Jail, where he was booked and released to pretrial services on his own recognizance.

He is expected to appear for a preliminary hearing on Nov. 15. If convicted, he could face up to 14 years in prison.

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