Font ResizeLAS CRUCES - One of three El Paso men captured after an on-duty Las Cruces Police Department officer spotted them in the act of burglarizing a car Feb. 15 was given two years' probation, according to sentencing paperwork filed this month.
Joshua Mendez, 20, originally from Modesto, Calif., was convicted in November of two counts of felony vehicle burglary and two counts of larceny, which could have resulted in a sentence of more than three years in prison. After being arrested, he spent one day in jail.
Third Judicial District Court Judge Fernando Macias also sentenced Mendez to 60 hours community service, random drug testing and to pay restitution to his four victims.
Mendez and two co-defendants were spotted just after midnight taking items from a vehicle parked on Altura Avenue, near the Las Cruces Country Club. The three ran but were located within an hour after a 20-block search by officers and K-9 units.
The thieves were also connected to two other vehicle burglaries on Peri Ann Drive.
Sun-News reports
