Unalaska, AK – Three individuals face criminal charges over the loader incident at Summers Bay Lake last week.

Ben Hladick, age 22, was charged with two class C felonies and three misdemeanors. Thomas Bell, age 23, was charged with two felonies and one misdemeanor. Miguel Wood, age 22, was charged with two misdemeanors.

The police statements present an image of a social gathering gone awry. On Wednesday night, a truck belonging to Cassandra Hawthorne was alleged to have been stolen by Bell while Wood was sitting in the vehicle. The keys were in the vehicle at the time. The truck was then driven off the road and onto the tundra, causing an excess of $500 worth of damage. Wendy Svarny-Hawthorne, president of the Ounalashka Corporation which owns the land, says the ruts caused by the vehicle could leave lasting damage.

"If you take a look around, trails and roads from World War II are still here," says Svarny Hawthorne. "It washes out anything that tries to take root. It will be there forever if it's not mitigated, if it's not reseeded, and if it's not watched."

After Bell and Wood reached the end of what they described as an old trail, the vehicle became stuck.

Additionally, court documents say that Ben Hladick's vehicle also became stuck in the area. When Hladick was unable to get his truck free, he began walking toward downtown Unalaska. Upon passing the landfill, Hladick allegedly took a 980 C Caterpillar loader parked there in order to tow out the two trucks out -- a situation he described as "desperate." The loader belonged to Archie Stepp of Northern Mechanical and had an estimated value of $90,000. After stealing the loader, Hladick testified that he took it down Overland Pass, where it ended up in the lake. Hladick sustained minor injuries.

The loader was found overturned on Thursday morning after Hladick called public safety. When police and rescue arrived at the scene, no one was found in the loader or its immediate vicinity. Coast Guard also had to respond to the incident because the loader was leaking diesel fuel, lube oil, and hydraulic oil into the lake.

The suspects' testimony asserts that alcohol was involved in the crimes.