Man who stole from mother gets eight months

A 28-year-old man who stole thousands of dollars from his parents and a “good Samaritan” to support his drug addictions has been sentenced to several months in jail.

Ryan Merton Quiroga pleaded guilty Tuesday in Lethbridge provincial court to several charges, including theft over $5,000 and theft under $5,000.

Court was told Quiroga used his mother’s debit card Jan. 9 of last year to drain nearly $3,000 from her bank account. The theft was particularly aggravating because, according to his mother’s victim impact statement, Quiroga’s father was on life support at the time, Judge Gregory Maxwell pointed out.

“I was appalled,” Maxwell said as he recounted Quiroga’s list of offences from which he left a “swath” of hurt people who trusted him.

A friend had trusted Quiroga and was allowing him to stay at her house last March while he underwent rehabilitation and treatment for his addictions. However, during his stay he stole money and numerous items, including jewelry, worth nearly $14,000.

Quiroga also pleaded guilty to a single count of dangerous driving Aug. 21, 2016. During a dispute with his former common-law wife, Quiroga threatened to kill himself, then drove off in his vehicle, swerving at the woman, forcing her to swerve away to avoid a collision.

Maxwell said that incident was particularly disturbing, as well, especially since a child was involved in the incident.

Quiroga also attempted to steal a bottle of vodka from a liquor store March 12, 2017, and he failed to attend court on two occasions and comply with court orders on another occasion.

“Obviously Mr. Quiroga has some serious problems,” Crown prosecutor Vaughan Hartigan told court.

However, Lethbridge lawyer Bill Wister said his client’s “demeanour” significantly improved while he was in custody waiting to deal with his charges. He said Quiroga is more alert, his eyes are brighter, and he wants to clean up his life.

Quiroga, who suffers from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, also told the judge he will try to do better.

Maxwell agreed — although with some reservation — with a joint submission by the Crown and defence for a jail sentence of eight months. With credit for time already spent in custody, however, Quiroga only has 23 more days to serve behind bars. He will be on probation for one year following his release from jail, and he won’t be allowed to drive for a year. He must also pay $2,900 restitution to his mother, and $13,820 to the woman who provided him a place to stay, and he’s to avoid contact with both women.