Investigation into refrigerator theft leads to fish house burglary charges

LITCHFIELD - Three men are facing multiple felony burglary charges for breaking into fish houses in February on Lake Ripley in Litchfield.  
The criminal complaints against Matthew Allen Bloomquist, 25, of Hawick, and Brennan Thomas Jeffrey, 18, of Litchfield, were recently amended to add the charges. Both men were originally charged with a single third-degree burglary count for burglarizing a shed north of Litchfield.
Bloomquist, who is in the Meeker County Jail on $100,000 bail, faces five felony charges for third-degree burglary and possession of burglary or theft tools, along with a misdemeanor charge of receiving stolen property. His next appearance is April 3.
Jeffrey faces seven felony charges, including third-degree burglary, fifth-degree drug possession and possession of burglary tools, plus the misdemeanor for receiving stolen property. His next hearing is May 19.
A third man, Mark Allen Londo, 38, of Litchfield, faces four felony charges and a misdemeanor charge for receiving stolen property and is scheduled to make his first appearance on April 1.
According to court documents, Bloomquist and Jeffrey were arrested Feb. 9 along the 31000 block of 620th Avenue in Harvey Township after the owner of the property caught them attempting to remove a refrigerator from a shed.
That same day, a man reported that two fish houses on Lake Ripley had been burglarized and that approximately $600 worth of property was missing or damaged from his fish house. The man’s fish house had previously been burglarized, on Dec. 26. About $1,000 in property was taken during that theft.
The man also reported that he saw some of the missing items at an apartment building in Litchfield, which was determined to be Londo’s residence.
The owner of the other burglarized fish house reported damage to the house and that about $150 worth of items were missing from the fish house.
At the apartment complex, officers located numerous fishing equipment items in a pop-up fish house. Londo was interviewed and allegedly claimed all of the property belonged to him.
Some of the property was identified as property stolen from the fish houses.
Both Bloomquist and Jeffrey allegedly admitted to participating in the burglaries and said the stolen items would be located where officers found them at Londo’s apartment.
They both also allegedly admitted to burglarizing a storage unit in Litchfield, taking tools and jewelry. Those items were found in Jeffrey’s vehicle when it was searched.