(Stillwater, Okla.) — A Cushing man who is on probation for stealing galvanized metal from the city of Cushing has been charged with concealing items stolen from a Cushing man’s truck on Ninth Street.
Larry Lee Pearson Jr., 32, appeared in court Monday and remains jailed on $5,000 bail pending a July 5 preliminary hearing on a charge of knowingly concealing stolen property after a former felony conviction.
Cushing Police Officer Justin Sappington was sent to the 900 block of E. Ninth Street shortly before midnight on March 31 on a report of a possible vehicle burglary, court records show.
The victim said that multiple items were taken from his vehicle including a blue Nike sports bag filled with clothing and golf hats, a silver golf watch, a black GPS watch, a video camcorder and a GPS unit, according to Sappington’s affidavit.
The victim’s son that a male tried to sell him his father’s stolen items, the affidavit said. The victim’s son said that when he confronted the male, the male dropped the GPS and camcorder, which were confirmed as the victim’s by their serial numbers, the affidavit said.
The Cushing police officer contacted Pearson and his roommate — who was not charged — at their residence and received consent from them to search it, the affidavit said.
“Pearson made the spontaneous statement that ‘the hats might be stolen,’ referring to multiple hats lying on the living room table, the affidavit alleged.
The officer later recovered a blue Nike bag and several hats that matched the description of the stolen ones, the affidavit said.
When the officer questioned the pair, Pearson said that a juvenile gave him the hats and a watch, while the roommate said that the juvenile gave him a GPS watch, the affidavit alleged.
Both said that a man, later identified as the victim’s son, came to their house and retrieved both watches, the affidavit alleged.
When the officer spoke to the juvenile with his parents, the juvenile admitted to burglarizing the victim’s truck on Ninth Street with Pearson, the affidavit alleged.
The juvenile said that they took the hats, the GPS, both watches, and a camcorder — and left all of the items at Pearson’s house, the affidavit alleged.
All of the stolen equipment was returned to the victim, the affidavit said.
Last fall, Pearson was charged with a teenager with stealing six pieces of galvanized metal valued at $2,000, owned by the city of Cushing, on Aug. 30, 2011, court records show.
Cushing Police Officer Carson Watts wrote in an affidavit that on that day shortly after 8 a.m. Electric Department Manager Mike Harris reported a meter reader told him two men were loading pieces of galvanized metal owned by the city of Cushing into a trailer bed.
“Harris said that upon his arrival, he saw the two white males, later identified as Jonathan Floyd and Larry Pearson, loading the metal onto a flatbed trailer.
“Harris said that he asked the men what they were doing, and they said they were given permission from a man that they only knew as Frank that they could have the metal.
“Harris said that he advised them that the metal was property of the city of Cushing, and they immediately began taking the metal off the trailer.
“Harris showed me the six pieces of the metal that the men had unloaded from the trailer and said the amount of the material would be over $500,” the officer wrote in his affidavit.
Floyd told the officer that he and Pearson had seen the metal on the ground in the 700 block of N. Noble Avenue, went to a business next door, and received permission from a man to take the metal, the affidavit said.
“I asked Jonathan (Floyd) if he knew who the man was and he said he just knew his name was Frank because it was written on his shirt.
“Jonathan and Larry (Pearson) were then told not to return to that area and were allowed to leave. Detective Harp and I were unable to locate any employee by the name of Frank at the business Jonathan and Larry said they had got permission from,” the officer wrote in his affidavit.
Floyd and Pearson were subsequently arrested and charged with grand larceny, to which they pleaded guilty, court records show.
Floyd, 19, was placed on two years’ probation on May 25 with an order to perform 75 hours of community service within nine months, to have random urine analysis tests, and to pay a $250 fine along with $50 to the victims’ compensation fund.
Pearson was given a 30-day jail term, ordered to pay the costs of his incarceration, fined $150, and placed on probation for two years and 11 months on April 20, court records show.
If convicted of violating his probation in the theft of city metal, Pearson could be sentenced to more than two years in prison.
If convicted of concealing the items stolen from the Cushing man’s truck, Pearson could be sentenced to five years in prison and fined $500, court records show.
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