LEWISTON – Two local men were charged Wednesday with attempting to sell $15,000 worth of tools stolen from a construction site in Presque Isle.

Police who pulled over the suspects’ van in downtown Lewiston found the vehicle crammed full of saws, drills, routers and other equipment, investigators said.

Shawn Asselin, 25, and David Levesque, 38, each were charged with receiving stolen property.

A detective who worked the case said the equipment had been stolen from Cyr Construction late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning.

The suspects had been working for the company but had been recently laid off, police said.

Wednesday morning, police in Lewiston were tipped off that a pair of men were riding around this city trying to peddle the stolen goods.

“We got information they were down here looking to sell some high-end tools,” police Detective David Chick said. “They had apparently contacted several people in an attempt to sell the stuff.”

The stolen equipment included laser tools, several specialty saws, power hammers, grinders, hydraulic devices and heaters, Chick said.

Police in Lewiston were given a description of the van as well as a license plate number. Before noon, police officers Michael Gooldrup and Jeff Parshall stopped the van in the downtown area.

Asselin and Levesque were arrested and most of the stolen items were recovered.

“Somebody from the construction company came down and picked up the equipment,” Chick said.

Cyr Construction is based in Caribou but had been working on a job in Presque Isle at the time of the theft. Company officials noticed equipment missing when they showed up for work Wednesday morning.

Asselin remained at the Androscoggin County Jail Thursday night. Levesque was released on bail.

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