Strand of hair on drink can leads to plea deal for Lanexa man

A Lanexa man connected to a 2012 grand larceny accepted a plea deal Monday morning in New Kent Circuit Court.

Kenneth Barnhardt IV, 32, of the 5000 block of Good Hope Rd., will receive no active time behind bars after he accepted an agreement. Barnhardt, however, will have to pay a fine of $7,020 in restitution.

In a summary of evidence provided by Commonwealth’s Attorney Linwood Gregory, between the dates of July 5-12, 2012, an air conditioning unit was stolen from the residence of John Gaban Tarjan. Gregory said the victim was attempting to sell or rent the home and regularly checked on it. The prosecuting attorney continued, saying that Tarjan realized the unit was missing when he returned to do regular landscaping on the property.

Investigating officers arrived, noting an energy drink can left at the location where the unit used to be. Found on the can was a strand of hair. Officers sent the can and recovered hair for DNA analysis.

Barnhardt’s DNA, on file from previous crimes, matched the strand of hair. When interviewed, Barnhardt said while he did consume that particular type of energy drink found at the crime scene, two of his friends had used his vehicle that day.

The defendant received 15 years in prison for the felony, with all suspended as part of the agreement, along with the aforementioned fine. A misdemeanor charge of failure to appear was dismissed due to Barnhardt being incarcerated in Montgomery County at the time of his first scheduled trial.