AUGUSTA — A South China man will spend six months behind bars for burglarizing two Augusta businesses and for possessing heroin, which led to a drug overdose.
Garrett T. Brown, 21, formerly of Augusta, was sentenced Tuesday at the Capital Judicial Center for two separate criminal incidents.
The remainder of Brown’s four-year sentence was suspended with Brown placed on probation for two years.
The break-ins occurred Feb. 4, 2014, at Safelite Auto Glass on State Street, where an after-hours glass deliveryman found damage to the business and called police. Investigators found a screwdriver and hammer jammed into a locked safe in an apparent attempt to open it. They also found a TV sitting on the ground. It had been torn from a wall mount. Police found a partial shoe print there, but little appeared to be missing.
Early the next day, a break-in was reported at Irving’s Augusta Quick Mart on Western Avenue, but nothing was taken.
Police identified Brown as a suspect after he and another man were arrested following reports they had broken into storage units behind the Turnpike Mall.
The co-defendant told police he was with Brown at the previous break-ins and that Brown had entered the businesses first, but they got scared off when they heard people approaching.
The co-defendant said they wanted to steal alcohol from the Quick Mart.
On Feb. 20, 2015, while Brown was on bail on the other charges, rescue workers and police responded to a report of a man suffering from a possible drug overdose and located Brown in a shed behind an Oxford Street home.
According to a police affidavit filed in court, Brown told medical providers he had overdosed on heroin, and a police officer indicated one of the items found at the scene tested positive for heroin.
On Tuesday, Brown was convicted of the two burglary charges and the unlawful possession of heroin. He had previously pleaded guilty to three counts of criminal mischief and one count of criminal trespass, all in connection with the same events.
Brown also was ordered to pay $684 restitution for damages and $140 for the drug testing.
Betty Adams — 621-5631
Twitter: @betadams
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