In an early morning escapade on 6 December, police say Shawn Joseph Hatch used a heavy-duty Yale forklift to extensively damage walls and destroy offices and personal property inside the Pocatello facility of SME Steel Contractors Inc.

Previously, Hatch, 35, worked for SME Steel as a welder. Police say a company employee witnessed Hatch leaving the building about 3:30 am.

Lt Paul Manning, public information officer with the Pocatello police department, says an ongoing investigation is exploring connections between Hatch and earlier break-ins at SME Steel in October and July. A search warrant resulted in the confiscation of allegedly stolen property from Hatch's residence and another home in Pocatello. "We need to tie it all together," Manning says. Early estimates place the value of the damage and thefts in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Ryan Godfrey, an assistant Bannock County prosecutor, filed charges against Hatch with counts of malicious injury to property, burglary and grand theft. The investigation may lead to more charges.

Hatch was released from the county jail on 7 December on his own recognizance subject to his appearance before Magistrate Judge Steven Thomsen for a preliminary hearing on 18 December.

West Jordan, Utah-based SME Steel fabricates and erects buildings and provides miscellaneous steel services.