Telegraph Staff Writer
STARKE— A Starke man was sentenced to 153 days in jail after admitting to helping a woman move out of a Hampton residence and helping himself to car motors stored in a shed on the same property,
Torsten Daniel Troutman, 46, of Starke pleaded to burglary of an unoccupied dwelling. The state dropped additional charges of grand theft and dealing in stolen property. Judge James M. Colaw also sentenced Troutman to three years’ probation, ordered him to pay $2,950 in restitution to the victim and gave him credit for time served of 153 days.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit, the victim told deputies he allowed his daughter-in-law to stay in a single-family residence in Hampton owned by him.
When she informed him she was moving out, the victim drove to the house and saw people loading her belongings from the home onto a utility trailer hauled by a red Ford, F-150.
“(The victim) stated that he spoke with (his daughter-in-law), who stated that she made it known to the individuals helping her move, identified as Torsten Troutman and (another man), not to touch anything inside the shed,” wrote Detective Michael Garmon in the affidavit. “(The daughter-in-law) also stated that she overheard the two men talking about taking the items to Guide Metals in order to scrap them.”
After the woman completed the move, the victim checked the property and noted car motors and a transmission missing from the shed.
Garmon reported that Guide Metal Recycling in Starke provided him with sales receipts for items sold to the business by Troutman, in addition to photographs of the defendant’s truck and trailer.
“In the photographs, onlookers are able to see that there are several items on the trailer which appear to be car motors,” Garmon wrote. “Those images were shown to the victim, who stated that those were the motors which were stolen out of his shed. The victim was also able to identify the vehicle as being the one he observed when stopping at the residence.”
