Carbon County court

A Luzerne County man admitted breaking into his former employer’s property and stealing over $1,000 worth of items in Carbon County court on Monday.

He was one of six defendants in pending criminal cases to enter a guilty plea before Judge Joseph J. Matika.

Weatherly incident

Brian M. Rolland, 51, of Milnesville, pleaded to one count each of burglary and theft. He was charged by Weatherly police with entering the Weatherly Castings property along Commerce Street on Oct. 9, 2017, and stealing power tools and scrap metal. The police reported a loss of $1,380.92 for the victim.

Rolland was a former employee of the firm but was let go sometime earlier. He is currently an inmate in the Luzerne County prison serving a three to 23 month term on unrelated charges.

Matika sentenced him to serve three to 18 months in prison, render 75 hours of community service when paroled, supply a DNA sample, get a drug and alcohol evaluation and follow any recommendation for treatment and make restitution of $1,380.92.

The prison term runs concurrent with the Luzerne sentence.

Two admit theft

Two women admitted to a retail theft incident at a county business.

Mirand Brooke Hancock, 24, of Kunkletown, and Jennifer Lynn Royall, 24, of Saylorsburg, admitted their part in an incident on Aug. 5 at the Country Junction business along Route 209 in Towamensing Township.

State police at Lehighton said Hancock entered the store and filled a shopping cart with items. She was stopped before she could exit the store. Royall was waiting outside in a vehicle.

Both were placed on probation for a year and ordered to render 50 hours of community service and to stay out of the store. No restitution was ordered since the items were recovered.

Other pleas

Jon Scott Snyder, 20, of Palmerton, pleaded to one count of flight to avoid apprehension. He was arrested on April 21 by state police at Lehighton in the area of Cornell Avenue in Lower Towamensing Township. Troopers attempted to serve an active arrest warrant on him and he fled.

Snyder is currently an inmate in the county prison on another pending charge.

Matika noted that Snyder is building up a prior record score at a young age. He also noted the criminal charges are tied to a drug addiction problem.

Snyder told Matika, “I’m tired of coming into this place (jail) like this. I want to be there for my kid.” He said he recently became a father.

Matika told him if he didn’t turn himself around he won’t be there for “birthdays, first day of school.”

Matika sentenced him to serve three to 18 months in prison and ordered him to get a drug and alcohol evaluation, render 75 hours of community service when paroled and supply a DNA sample.

Julian Andre, 25, of Freeland, pleaded to one count each of retail theft and resisting arrest. He was arrested on Jan. 14, 2015, by Mahoning Township police at the Walmart store. When police attempted to take him into custody, he resisted.

Matika placed him on probation for a year on the resisting charge and ordered he get a drug and alcohol evaluation and render 50 hours of community service.

On the retail theft count, a summary offense, he was fined $100 and ordered to make restitution of $15.96 to Walmart.

Eli Daniel Suveg, 26, of Carbondale, Lackawanna County, pleaded to one count of retail theft. He was arrested on Aug. 1, 2017, by Mahoning Township police at the Walmart store.

He was placed on probation for a year and ordered to render 50 hours of community service, make restitution of $49 (half share) and stay out of the store. There is a co-defendant in the case.

Stevie Ray Kates, 48, of Jim Thorpe, pleaded to one count of firearm not to be carried without a license. He was arrested following a traffic stop on March 25 by state police at Lehighton along Route 248 in Lower Towamensing Township. He was found with a 40-caliber pistol, police said.

He was placed on probation for a year and ordered to render 50 hours of community service.

Sentencing

Juan Jesus Martinez, 28, of Brooklyn, New York, who previously pleaded guilty to a DUI count, was sentenced.

Matika sentenced him to serve 72 hours to six months in jail, pay a fine of $1,000, one year license suspension, follow any recommendation of his drug and alcohol evaluation and render 25 hours of community service. He was given credit for four days already served in prison on the charge and paroled.

He was arrested on Dec. 18, 2017, by state police at Fern Ridge along Interstate 80 in Kidder Township. A test revealed the presence of a controlled substance.

Each defendant must also pay court costs of about $1,000 and a $50 per month supervision fee while on parole or probation.