Camp break-ins under investigation in Piscataquis County

DOVER-FOXCROFT – Seasonal residents returning to clean out their cottages for the summer are finding that burglars did the work for them over the winter.

Several camp break-ins are under investigation by the Piscataquis County Sheriff’s Department, including one in Kingsbury Plantation in which more than $70,000 worth of items was taken.

Two antique motorcycles, one of which was used by police, two all-terrain vehicles, two snowmobiles and a trailer, a large generator, chain saws, a wood splitter, a lawn mower, and snowmobile helmets and jackets were taken last month from the Kingsbury seasonal home, according to Lt. Robert Young of the sheriff’s department.

The motorcycles are not something that would be sold on the street, Young said. They would be of interest only to a particular market, he said Tuesday.

There was no sign of forced entry into the camp, but the burglars did force a garage door open to remove the vehicles, Young said.

On the other end of the county, police are investigating a break-in at a camp on Big Boyd Lake in Lakeview. There, burglars took a 3-foot section of copper tubing, miscellaneous Snap-On tools and a propane regulator, according to Investigator Allen Emerson of the sheriff’s department.

Investigator Guy Dow is handling a break-in and vandalism at a camp on Bennett Pond Road in Parkman. The vandalism included broken windows. It is unknown what items were taken from the camp, if any, he said. The owner plans to be in Parkman today to do an inventory.

On Tuesday, a man who had a contract to salvage an old farmhouse on Route 150 reported to police that someone had stolen the old doors and a mantel from the building.

Dow said he also is investigating five reports of thefts from vehicles, four of which occurred in Monson and one in Guilford. A purse was taken from the latter vehicle and $80 was reported missing from one of the Monson vehicles. All of the vehicles were unlocked, he said.

Police also are investigating the theft of a 2,000-watt generator that was stolen from an Orneville shed over the weekend.