A Jefferson City resident has pleaded guilty to charges in connection with breaking into and taking items from several vehicles in June and July 2017
Eli Doyle, 17, was charged with five counts of stealing, two counts of fraudulent use of a credit device, misdemeanor second-degree tampering with a motor vehicle, and misdemeanor second-degree property damage.
Cole County Judge Dan Green placed Doyle on two years of unsupervised probation and ordered he pay $719 in restitution.
In an earlier court appearance, the other defendant in this case, Dylan Gibson, 18, was sentenced to six months in jail, with credit for time served, after pleading guilty to amended charges. He pleaded guilty to two counts of fraudulent use of a debit device, two counts of stealing, and one count each of second-degree tampering and second-degree property damage. All these counts were misdemeanors. Gibson had originally faced felony charges in this case.
The thefts occurred June 30 and July 1, 2017, according to the Jefferson City Police Department . Areas hit included Hayselton and Arden drives. Officers noted while several cars were broken into, most of the victims did not want to press charges for the items taken.
In one case, the victim said her car was left unlocked and her purse was taken. The victim's wallet was in the purse, which contained a debit card from Hawthorn Bank. Bank officials said several unauthorized charges had been made on the card, which the card-holder notified the bank had been stolen.
Officers went to the locations where the card had been used and developed suspects, thanks primarily to surveillance video, identifying Doyle and Gibson as the suspects.
On July 1, officers stopped a vehicle Doyle and Gibson were in. A search of the vehicle located several items that had been stolen.
When interviewed, Gibson confessed to entering vehicles and taking items. Doyle confessed to assisting Gibson by driving him to locations to break into vehicles.