Police: EC woman implicated in theft of BMW from storage facility

Dan Holtz, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·2 min read

Mar. 20—EAU CLAIRE — An Eau Claire woman played a role in the theft of a BMW from an Eau Claire storage facility, authorities say.

Stephanie K. Ottum, 25, 3118 Preston Road, was charged recently in Eau Claire County Court with felony counts of theft and concealing stolen property.

A warrant has been issued for Ottum's arrest.

Christopher A. Lamb, 40, and Cory M. Billstrom, 49, were previously charged in connection with the case. They return to court Tuesday and April 11, respectively.

According to the criminal complaint:

Chippewa Falls police in December began investigating reported thefts from storage units on Kennedy Road in Chippewa Falls.

Security video showed a silver BMW entering the storage unit parking lot and driving to the same row of storage units that had been burglarized. A male suspect stole about $4,350 worth of items.

Police contacted the owner of the BMW on Dec. 7. He said the car had been at a storage unit in Eau Claire for some time.

The owner then checked his own storage unit at Packer Mini Storage and noticed the vehicle was missing. He said his car was valued at $15,000.

Police received an anonymous tip on Dec. 15 that Billstrom had the owner's BMW. The tip included information that Billstrom and others had been breaking into storage units and that Billstrom was trying to sell the BMW for $500. He intended to strip the vehicle if he could not sell it.

The BMW owner told police on Dec. 27 that he had been in contact with Billstrom, who wanted money in exchange for returning the car.

Billstrom wanted $2,500 for the stolen BMW. He told the owner he bought it and didn't steal it. Billstrom told the man he would never see the car again if he got arrested. Billstrom was subsequently arrested.

In an interview with police in January, Lamb admitted to being involved with storage unit burglaries. He said he stole the BMW and then sold it to Lamb.

A string of text messages between Billstrom and Ottum showed Ottum had direct knowledge of the location of the BMW, that it was stolen, and who was involved with its theft.

Lamb and Billstrom are both being prosecuted as repeat offenders.

Lamb was convicted of a felony count of burglary in May 2021 in Eau Claire County.

Billstrom was convicted of a felony count of robbery with threat of force in May 2013 in Winnebago County.