BELCHERTOWN — A Connecticut man who allegedly stole a landscaping truck and equipment from a Hadley location more than seven years ago resolved his case on March 24 in Eastern Hampshire District Court.
Pablo Garcia Jr., 30, of Bridgeport, submitted to facts sufficient to warrant a guilty finding on a charge of larceny over $250, allowing Judge Bruce Melikian to rule that the case could be continued without a finding until June 24.
That means that the final charge brought against Garcia will be dismissed in three months. Other charges, including larceny of a motor vehicle, malicious damage and defacing of real property, were all dismissed by Melikian immediately.
Garcia, who works as a substance abuse counselor, was arrested in November 2014 after finding a pickup truck with keys in the ignition, and a trailer attached carrying landscaping equipment on River Drive. He took off with the truck and allegedly drove over a leaf blower valued at $650 and also damaged part of the lawn, before being taken into custody on Interstate 91.
Since that time, Garcia has turned his life around, said his attorney Allison Pash, who described him as undergoing a “completely positive transformation.” Melikian, too, applauded Garcia for returning to court and the “good work you are doing.”
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
