Orange County News
For Immediate Release Contact: Christopher Borek
October 2, 2019 845.291.3276, 845.238.4245c
District Attorney Hoovler Announces Guilty Verdict
In Burglary of Town of Wallkill Sprint Store
Long Island Man Convicted After Jury Trial of Burglary in the Third Degree,
Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, Criminal Possession of Stolen
Property in the Third Degree, and Possession of Burglar’s Tools
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced that on Wednesday, October 2, 2019, Donald Potter, 32, of Medford, Long Island, was convicted after a jury trial in Orange County Court of Burglary in the Third Degree, Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Third Degree, and Possession of Burglar’s Tools. The convictions were returned in connection with the burglary of the Sprint Store located at 469 Route 211 East in the Town of Wallkill, and the theft and possession of over $40,000 worth of new iPhones. Potter faces a maximum sentence of three and a half to seven years in prison when he is sentenced by Orange County Judge Robert H. Freehill on December 4, 2019.
At the trial, prosecutors argued that on October 20, 2018, at approximately 4:35 a.m., Potter and two accomplices entered and remained unlawfully in the Sprint Store with the intent to steal iPhones. Less than an hour later, Potter and his accomplices were found in a vehicle in the City of Port Jervis, in possession of forty-two new iPhones that had been stolen from the store.
District Attorney Hoovler thanked the Town of Wallkill Police Department and City of Port Jervis Police Department for their investigation of the case and their assistance during the prosecution.
“Criminal activity is even more pernicious when it is organized,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “This defendant apparently believed that since he and his accomplices did not reside in Orange County, they could escape responsibility for the crimes they committed here. Fortunately, the close cooperation and coordination between the various police agencies that investigated this case, and the District Attorney’s Office, ensured that there was a just result, and that this defendant will be held accountable for his crimes.”
District Attorney Hoovler highly commended Assistant District Attorneys Janine Kovacs and Colleen Decker, who prosecuted the case.
A criminal charge is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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