Big time burglar sentenced to five years

A man who stole a safe containing forty-three thousand dollars has been sentenced to five years in jail. Thirty-four year old Ernest Gladden pleaded guilty to the burglary, which occurred in May of last year at the office of Hugh Parkey’s Dive Connection at seventy-one North Front Street in Belize City. Gladden also pled guilty to a charge of Damage to Property for the breaking of three padlocks and received a one year sentence to run concurrently with the five year term. He had two previous convictions for theft and drug possession.

A co-defendant, twenty-five year old Carlos Castro, pled guilty to Handling Stolen Goods shortly after his trial began. Magistrate Roberto Ordonez fined him two thousand dollars, half of which to be paid forthwith. When Castro could not come up with the cash he was sentenced to two years in prison. Gladden was detained following a traffic stop at the junction of the old and new Northern Highways where he was found in possession of several thousand dollars in U.S. currency.