A guilty plea was entered in Estevan Provincial Court on Monday regarding an incident that occurred earlier this year at the Wicklow Centre.
James L. Cuppage pleaded guilty to break and enter. A couple of other charges, including theft under $5,000 and possession of property obtained by crime, were stayed.
His lawyer, Roch Dupont, said Cuppage works as a labourer with a service rig company.
“It was a stupid situation he got himself in,” Dupont said in court.
Dupont described the theft as a “free for all shopping spree.”
Cuppage, who didn’t have a criminal record before the incident, apologized for the theft.
A joint submission called for a three-month conditional sentence order (CSO), followed by 18 months of probation. But since Cuppage pleaded guilty and was apologetic, it was reduced to 12 months of probation by Judge Michelle Brass.
Cuppage must also abstain from drugs, alcohol and cannabis during the CSO, but not during probation, and serve 100 hours of community service.
The break and enter occurred in the basement of the Wicklow Centre in January. Among the items stolen were a laptop, a golf bag with a set of golf clubs, an air compressor, power tools and other construction tools.
An anonymous tip said the items were located under a tarp in the backyard of a house in the 700-block of Second Street. A search warrant was executed and the Estevan Police Service recovered the majority of the stolen property, including the laptop, the golf clubs and the bag.
Cuppage’s father, James A. Cuppage, previously pleaded guilty to his role in the incident.
The charges for two other people remain before the courts in connection with the incident. One is a young offender and the other is an adult. Their charges have been adjourned to June 17.
