NY man pleads guilty to $60K Westport jewelry theft

STAMFORD — A New York man pleaded guilty Wednesday to stealing more than $60,000 in jewelry from a Westport home.

Franco Saladrigas-Garcia, 29, of the Bronx, N.Y, pleaded guilty to first-degree larceny, third-degree burglary and possession of burglary tools at Superior Court in Stamford on Wednesday.

The guilty pleas came as a part of deal offered by Superior Court Judge Gary White in May.

Saladrigas-Garcia rejected the offer last month, but appeared back in court Wednesday and asked to accept the deal.

Under the offer, Saladrigas-Garcia will receive a suspended seven-year sentence, which includes no time served, along with a one-year conditional discharge, which is a form of probation. He will also be required to pay a $10,000 fine by Dec. 14.

With the conditional discharge, Saladrigas-Garcia could face up to 26 years in prison if he is arrested, receives any citations, or misses any court dates over the one-year probationary period.

Saladrigas-Garcia was arrested on charges of possession of burglary tools, first-degree larceny, thirddegree burglary, illegal possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle and two counts of first-degree failure to appear following an April 11, 2020, residential burglary in Westport where more than $60,000 in jewelry was taken.

Six days after the theft, police pulled over a vehicle driven by Saladrigas-Garcia on the Merritt Parkway. During the traffic stop, police found several pairs of gloves, a crowbar and a large knife. The crowbar appeared to match the tool used in the Westport burglary, police said at the time.