An officer's quick memory helped Bismarck police arrest a suspect in tire thefts from Wal-Mart.

Bismarck Police Sgt. Dwight Offerman said Officer Karin McNamee responded to the second report of a man in a red minivan with temporary license plates stealing tires from a Bismarck Wal-Mart store.

The first report of tire thefts, made on Wednesday, involved two tires taken from the south Wal-Mart, 2717 Rock Island Place, by a man who drove off in a red minivan, Offerman said. He said the tires were valued at $340.

The second report, made on Friday, involved four Uniroyal tires, valued at $440, being taken from the north Wal-Mart, 1400 Skyline Boulevard, on Dec. 20, Offerman said.

He said McNamee had responded to a domestic disturbance on Dec. 23, and remembered a stack of new tires at the apartment. Though it seemed unusual, there was nothing suspicious about the tires at that time, Offerman said. The male half of the disturbance had left for the night to stay at another man's home, he said.

McNamee returned to the apartment, which no longer housed the tires, following the report at Wal-Mart, Offerman said. He said she found out the man from the domestic disturbance had stayed with Clark Baker, who owns a red minivan with temporary license plates, Offerman said.

Baker was arrested for the tire thefts, as well as the theft of a $200 dual-disc DVDplayer, Offerman said.

Baker was charged Monday with Class Cfelony theft of property for the Wednesday tire theft and the DVD player.

South Central District Judge Robert Wefald set bond for Baker at $5,000 cash.

The case remains under investigation, and officers are looking for another possible suspect, Offerman said. He praised McNamee's work in the case.

"She did a fine job,"he said.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com.)