Crime and Courts

Man sentenced for Belgrade purse theft that led to high-speed chase

Posted: Feb 5, 2013 12:09 PM by Erin Schattauer

BOZEMAN - A man accused of stealing a woman's purse in a Belgrade grocery store parking lot then leading authorities on a high-speed chase along Interstate 90 over the summer was sentenced today.

Kenneth Lohman was found guilty of theft in the case. He was sentenced to six months in jail with credit for 205 days already served. Lohman's attorney explained that he had already surpassed the six-month sentence by a few weeks. Lohman must also pay more than $1,500 in restitution.

Judge Holly Brown said during sentencing that Lohman's actions have physiologically and emotionally damaged the 67-year-old victim whose purse he stole.

"A small act of illegal and unthinking behavior by Mr. Lohman in a few seconds, one or two seconds, has made an impact on (this woman) for the rest of her life," Brown said.

Lohman and another man, Joshua Bolton, were both arrested after the July incident.

"A small act of illegal and unthinking behavior by Mr. Lohman in a few seconds, one or two seconds, has made an impact on (this woman) for the rest of her life," Brown said.

At around 2:44 p.m. Sunday, July 15, Belgrade police were called to the Belgrade Albertson's where an elderly woman said she had been knocked to the ground in the parking lot by a man who stole her purse. The woman said the man took the purse out of her cart then got into the passenger side of a car. She said she reached into the car trying to get her purse back when the vehicle accelerated with her arm still inside and she was knocked to the ground, according to court documents.

Soon after, a Montana Highway Patrol trooper spotted a vehicle matching the car's description on Interstate 90 near Three Forks, but when he tried to stop the vehicle it fled at a high rate of speed and a pursuit ensued, court papers state.

Troopers pursued the vehicle and located it near Cardwell at which point it reportedly crossed the median and began traveling westbound in the eastbound lane. Troopers lost track of the vehicle but later found it parked on the roadside on Cottonwood Road.

When they found the vehicle, Lohman and a juvenile female passenger were taken into custody, but Bolton got out of the car with a knife, then dropped it and fled, court papers state.

Troopers from Montana Highway Patrol and deputies from Gallatin, Broadwater and Jefferson county sheriff's departments searched for the driver. Bolton was later found with the help of a helicopter and K-9 unit, hiding under a nearby residence, according to authorities.