The father and son duo arrested in Springfield Township last month for a string of larcenies both pled guilty July 8 in Circuit Court.
Gregory Michael Baker, 52, was charged with three felony counts of breaking and entering’each carrying a maximum 10-year sentence’and one felony count of larceny ‘carrying a maximum 4-year sentence.
He was sentenced July 22 to 305 days in jail.
Gregory Ted Baker, 18, was prosecuted on the same charges, plus an additional count of receiving/concealing stolen property, a one-year misdemeanor.
He was sentenced July 22 to 150 days in jail.
According to police reports, the men blamed the behavior on drugs, and said they sold stolen merchandise to support their gram-a-day heroin addiction.
The thefts began when items went missing May 30 from a shed on Big Lake Road.
Other thefts occurred June 4 and June 7; on June 10, owners of a Springfield Township landscaping company reported a theft after discovering $4,500 in landscaping equipment missing after a lock was cut from a trailer.
The thieves returned to the same location on Terex the following night, and were caught on surveillance video; a tape showed two males, who were apparently scared off by an alarm.
‘The lesson here is very elementary, but I can’t stress it enough,? Sgt. Tim Willis, commander of the Springfield Township substation told The Clarkston News for a June 24 story. ‘These guys only cut one lock, everything else they took was left unlocked. They didn’t mess with dogs or floodlights; if doors were locked they moved on. People need to secure their belongings. I’m not saying it will deter every thief, but it deterred these guys.?
In addition to jail time, both men must pay court and restitution fees, undergo drug treatment and comply with other court-ordered conditions upon release.