WILHOIT, Ariz. -- A money trail led Yavapai County sheriff's deputies to a suspect in a burglary at a Wilhoit, Ariz., bar.
An employee at the Burro Inn Bar on Highway 89 told deputies that at approximately noon on Sunday someone broke into the closed business through a window and stole money displayed on interior walls.
Over the years, customers and celebrities have signed $1, $5 and $10 bills, which are attached to the walls and rafters. It was estimated that the suspect took more than $100 in currency displayed inside the bar.
The employee alerted staff at the nearby Country Corner Store to watch for these bills at their register.
According to YCSO spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn, a store employee told deputies that a customer identified as Kain Lyster, 34, had used a suspicious $5 bill to purchase mints. During the transaction, Lyster handed the bill to the clerk upside down, received his change and left.
When the clerk turned the bill over to place it in the register drawer, the employee saw the unique writing described by the Burro Inn employee.
D'Evelyn said the bill also contained staple holes and a torn top right-hand corner. Deputies matched the tear in the bill's corner with a piece of the same bill still attached to the wall.
When deputies questioned Lyster about the use of the bill, he claimed it was found on the highway the prior day. Deputies noted the bill was not missing prior to midnight as it remained intact at the Burro Inn until closing. Additionally, the bill did not show any signs of damage from the rainstorm overnight.
Lyster was booked into the Camp Verde Detention Center for charges including burglary, theft and criminal damage. Lyster remains in custody on a $10,000 bond.
Search for additional stolen property is ongoing.
