Burglary, firearm larceny sends New Kent man to prison for four years

A New Kent man will spend the next four-and-a-half years in prison after receiving formal sentencing Monday morning in New Kent Circuit Court proceedings.

Robert Austin Payne, 23, of the 11000 block of Oakrise Road, was found guilty during a contested trial on Nov. 14, 2016 on one count each of firearm larceny, burglary, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. During the sentencing phase, Payne acknowledged that an addiction to drugs resulted in the crimes committed.

Payne received a 20-year sentence with 18 years suspended on the burglary conviction (two years to serve). He also received two years, six months of active time for the possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, with two of those years being served as mandatory time under state statute. All 20 years on the firearm larceny conviction were suspended.

In an unrelated case, a Toano man will serve seven months in jail after accepting a plea deal to two counts of forging of public documents.

Moises Delacruz-Dominguez, 28, of the 7700 block of Croaker Road, entered guilty pleas to the aforementioned charges.

In a summary of evidence provided by Commonwealth’s Attorney Linwood Gregory, on Nov. 5, 2016 shortly after 8 p.m., a New Kent deputy noticed a vehicle drifting back and forth between lanes heading eastbound on Route 33 towards West Point. The deputy trailed the vehicle, noting the number of times it crossed over the white and yellow solid lines before activating emergency equipment. The vehicle eventually came to a stop at a gas station in West Point where the deputy requested information of the driver. Delacruz-Dominguez presented Mexican identification papers under a different name and forged the same name on a summons.

After the defendant was arrested for driving under the influence, he was taken to jail where he began the intake process. After his fingerprints were entered into the registry, James City County’s Sheriff’s Office called to inform that a warrant was out for the arrest of Delacruz-Dominguez. When the defendant was confronted about the information that New Kent officers just received, he admitted that he lied about his name and forged his name on the summons.

Under the plea agreement, Delacruz-Dominguez received a five-year sentence with four years, five months suspended on the first forgery charge. All five years on the second count were suspended.