KELLOGG, Idaho – The Kellogg Police Department identified a man connected with a burglary of more than $1 million worth of crystals. More than 15,000 crystals were stolen and police are still looking for some of the collection. The crystals were stolen from a house that Bob Hopper, the current owner of Bunker Hill Mine, was preparing to turn into a museum. Hopper said when he noticed the crystals were gone, a monetary reward was offered. He said within 20 minutes he received a tip leading to a man in possession of half the collection.
Officials said Josh Easley was arrested Saturday after Kellogg Police searched his apartment and found the crystals thrown in tubs. This is not Easley’s first run-in with the law; he spent time in jail for petty theft and DUI.
The Hopper family used social media to warn other mineral and gem groups and to keep an eye out for the stolen crystals. It led them to Gaia’s Rock’n Crystals in Coeur d’Alene. The owner of the shop said on three separate instances people came into the shop with a box of crystals from Bunker Hill worth a couple thousand dollars. The people did not know the value or worth of the crystals they had. The shop owner did not purchase the crystals because she believed it was out of the ordinary and thought they might be stolen.
Police went to Gaia’s Rock’n Crystals Monday but could not confirm the people trying to sell the crystals had any connection to the Bunker Hill burglary. Kellogg Police are working closely the with Hopper family to retrieve the rest of their collection.