(Stillwater, Okla.) — An arrest warrant has been issued for a Cushing teenager accused of breaking into a Cushing man’s storage shed from which equipment was reportedly stolen and offered for sale on Craigslist — including a $700 generator that was recovered by Drumright police.
If convicted of his Payne County second-degree burglary charge, Daren Shane Guffey, 18, could be imprisoned for two to seven years, court records show.
The teen and his wife, Christle Raeann Guffey, 34, have also been charged in Logan County with stealing a $1,200 riding lawnmower from a Coyle man’s carport. Both remain free on $10,000 bond pending an Oct. 23 court appearance.
Cushing Police Officer Matt Piatt wrote in an affidavit filed last week that on Sept. 11 at 3:46 p.m. he was dispatched to the 1500 block of E. Broadway in Cushing regarding a burglary.
A Cushing man said that his garage and shed were broken into between Aug. 30 and Sept. 11, the affidavit said.
He said that a $300 green and black Craftsman wheeled weed trimmer, a $250 green 5 HP Briggs and Stratton Quantum Power Wheeled Weedeater lawnmower with 20-inch cut, a $700 yellow McCulloch generator and a red five-gallon gas can with fuel valued at $20 were missing, the affidavit said.
The Cushing police officer said that he located a generator matching the description on Craigslist for sale in Drumright and asked Drumright officers to check the generator’s serial numbers, the affidavit said.
Drumright police confirmed that the serial numbers matched the Cushing victim’s generator and recovered it at the Cushing officer’s request, the affidavit said.
“The person that purchased the generator told police he purchased the generator from Daren Guffey and supplied police with the address to Guffey,” in Cushing, the affidavit alleged.
“Officer Haywood and I went to the address and spoke to Guffey, who admitted to stealing the generator, a gas can with 2.5 gallons of fuel and a 5 HP Briggs and Stratton Quantum Power Wheeled Weedeater lawnmower with 20-inch cut,” the affidavit alleged.
“The gas can and fuel were recovered at Guffey’s residence,” the affidavit alleged.
“Guffey wrote a statement and gave me a bill of sale for the Wheeled Weedeater lawnmower tha the had already sold on Craigslist to another person,” Officer Piatt alleged in his affidavit.
Six months ago, Guffey and his wife were charged with stealing a Coyle man’s $1,200 riding lawnmower and concealing it from the true owner, court records show.
Logan County Sheriff’s Deputy James Daves wrote in an affidavit that he was dispatched to the 200 block of W. Lee in Coyle at 1:17 p.m. on April 5 regarding a riding lawnmower that had just been taken from a carport.
“The reporting party stated that the vehicle had left westbound towards Highway 33 heading towards Guthrie. I was also advised that the victim’s brother was trying to catch up to the suspect vehicle,” the deputy wrote in his affidavit.
“While I was speaking with the reporting party, Deputy Shawn Lewellyn stated that he was going out on the possible suspect vehicle at the location of 12th and Noble in Guthrie,” the deputy wrote in his affidavit.
“I made contact with Christle R. Guffey, who was seated in the back seat of Lewellyn’s unit since she was the driver at the time of the traffic stop.
“She stated that they had just bought the mower, they had a yard service and were always looking for good deals on equipment.
“I asked what the guy looked like that sold her the lawn mower and she described Deputy Lewellyn.
“She stated that they had met with him the day before and he wanted $250 for it, that she had talked him down to $150, and advised him she would come back the next day to pick it up.
“That her and her husband had returned and met with the same male subject and gave him the money and he gave them the mower.
“I asked if she had ever been arrested before and she stated that she had for burglary, but it was a big misunderstanding just like this deal too.
“I advised her that the owner was approximately late 60s, short and heavier-set…I asked her if she thought that a $1,200 riding lawnmower for $150 was a little hard to believe — she stated that that’s what they did, look for good deals to save money for their company,” the deputy alleged in his affidavit.
The Coyle man arrived and identified his riding lawnmower and the vehicle as the one he had seen in the alley way with his lawnmower on the trailer with the black tool box, the affidavit alleged.
The victim said “he had just paid over $200 to have it repaired earlier that week and he sure would not sell it for such a cheap price after paying more than that to get it working,” the affidavit said.
The couple were arrested and the lawnmower was released to the victim, the affidavit said.
If convicted of stealing the $1,200 riding lawnmower and concealing it from the true owner, the couple could each be given a 10-year prison term and fined $5,500 each, court records show.
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