Johnny Basiente John, a notorious thief in Garapan, has entered a guilty plea to a burglary and theft cases, and slapped with a two-year prison term. <\/p>\n
John, 29, signed a plea deal with the government and pleaded guilty on Tuesday to the offenses of theft, and assault and battery in the 2015 and 2016 cases, respectively.<\/p>\n
Superior Court Associate Judge Teresa Kim-Tenorio accepted the plea deal and sentenced John to a total of two years.<\/p>\n
The defendant was given credit for 180 days. He was remanded to the Department of Corrections. His release date is Dec. 23, 2017.<\/p>\n
After serving the prison term, the defendant will be placed on supervised probation for five years. During the probationary period, he will be required to pay $7,000 in restitution to the victim, Zheng Hua.<\/p>\n
John was ordered to pay a $100 fine, $500 in probation fee, and $100 in court assessment fee. He was required to perform 100 hours of community work service and complete any recommended counseling by the Community Guidance Center.<\/p>\n
John was ordered to write a letter of apology to victims Zheng Hua and Guiming Zheng. <\/p>\n
According to the factual basis of the plea agreement, John stole a wallet containing $7,000 cash, identification cards, bank cards, and documents belonging to Hua in Garapan, Saipan on April 14, 2015. <\/p>\n
John also unlawfully struck Mr. Zheng with a rock, causing a scratch on his finger in Garapan on Jan. 3, 2016.<\/p>\n
As part of the plea deal, the government moved to dismiss the remaining charges in the 2015 case. The court granted the motion.<\/p>\n
Acting chief prosecutor Barbara Cepeda appeared for the government. Richard Pierce is the court-appointed counsel for John.<\/p>\n
In the 2016 case, police officer John Cabrera chased and arrested John, who ran away after burglarizing New Double Luck Restaurant in Garapan and trying to hit the owner, Zheng, with a rock. <\/p>\n
Cabrera found John hiding under a tree covered with heavy vines and bushes near YP Apartment in Garapan.<\/p>\n
In the 2015 case, police arrested John for stealing Miss Hua\u2019s wallet containing $7,000 and other items and threatened her with a knife at Body Works Massage in Garapan on April 14, 2015.<\/p>\n
Detective Catherine B. Pangelinan identified John as the culprit after reviewing the footage of a surveillance camera. <\/p>\n
During follow-up operation, police subsequently found John and recovered from him the victim\u2019s identification cards and bank cards, and a stolen bicycle.<\/p>\n
According to court documents, John has previous criminal convictions, mostly burglary and theft when he was still a juvenile.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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