Local woman sentenced for 6-month crime spree
A local woman pleaded guilty Monday in Garland County Circuit Court to 12 felony charges involving a sixmonth crime spree of vehicle breakins, burglaries, thefts and illegal drugs beginning in June 2016.
Jennifer Leeann McGuire, alias Jennifer Williams, 30, who lists a Lakeshore Drive address, pleaded guilty to three counts of breaking or entering, three counts of residential burglary, two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, one count of possession of methamphetamine with purpose to deliver, possession of lorazepam, possession of meth and theft of property, all felonies, and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.
McGuire, who has remained in custody since her last arrest Nov. 29, 2016, was sentenced to six years in prison, with four years suspended, on each felony count, all to run concurrently, fined a total of $1,600, and ordered to pay a total of $1,660 in court costs and restitution to five of the victims totaling $33,848.56.
She was also sentenced to one year in jail on the misdemeanor charge with credit for time served. If she violates the terms of her suspended sentence upon her release, she could face up to
32 years in prison.
The first incident involved the June
3, 2016, theft of a cellphone, passport, wallet, ID and credit cards from a vehicle parked at Oaklawn Racing & Gaming, 2705 Central Ave. On June
7, Hot Springs police detective Paul Allen reviewed security video of the incident, which showed a white female entering the victim’s vehicle and later going into Oaklawn.
Once inside, the woman used her player’s card identifying her as McGuire and Allen noted he also recognized McGuire from prior encounters. He phoned her about the incident, and she agreed to come in for questioning but never did.
On July 15, a woman reported a break-in to her car at Whispering Pines Condos, 125 Carl Drive, with a suitcase, CDs, perfume, phone chargers and headphones stolen. A review of security video showed a woman,
later identified as McGuire, entering the car and opening the trunk and later leaving carrying multiple bags.
On July 28, a man reported a break-in to his pickup parked at Outback Steak House, 180 Pakis Road, and the theft of several items including a GPS unit and digital camera. A review of the restaurant’s security video showed a woman, later identified as McGuire, approach the vehicle on a bicycle and climb inside through the rear sliding glass window. She left about 25 minutes later with a full backpack.
On Sept. 11, around 3 a.m., police checked a suspicious vehicle reported in the parking lot of the Red Roof Inn, 1125 E. Grand, and identified the passenger as McGuire, who was taken into custody on warrants. A syringe loaded with meth was found on the ground near the passenger door and several used syringes and a baggie with multiple pills, including lorazepam and oxycodone, were found in a bag McGuire admitted was hers.
She was taken into custody on the drug charges and the felony warrants and later released on $7,000 bond.
On Oct. 12, HSPD Officer Thomas Plummer located McGuire, who was being sought again on warrants, including failure to appear, near the intersection of Burchwood Bay and Carter Dairy roads, and she initially identified herself as Jennifer Williams. She briefly fled on foot, but was apprehended moments later.
During a search of her person and bags she was carrying, Plummer found a syringe loaded with meth, a baggie with meth, a pill bottle with no label containing 147 lorazepam pills, eight empty syringes, a glass pipe, and empty baggies with meth residue. She was later released on $8,500 bond.
On Oct. 20, a burglary was reported on Sunset Bay Road in which multiple items were stolen, with a total value of $26,608. Video showed a white female, later identified as McGuire, walking away from the residence with several items.
On Oct. 23, a woman on Brighton Place reported a burglary by a known suspect, identified as McGuire. She said around 11 a.m., McGuire, whom she knew as a former employee at her doctor’s office, came into her workshop asking about a sign she had hanging outside. The woman noted she felt uneasy about McGuire and asked her to sign the guest book for her workshop and she did, signing her name, “Jennifer McGuire” and listing her Lakeshore Drive address.
She said McGuire left the shop, but a few minutes later when she went into her residence she found McGuire in her hallway. She asked her what she was doing there and McGuire told her she was “running away from a man” and was scared and needed to call 911. She claimed she came in through an open window, but the woman noticed one of the window screens in the living room had been removed for McGuire to make entry.
She allowed McGuire to use her phone to call 911, but minutes later McGuire was picked up by an unknown person in a white compact car and left the area. The woman noted nothing appeared to be missing from her residence.
On Nov. 28, a woman reported a burglary at her residence on Moonlight Bay Road. She said shortly after 9:30 a.m., her home security system alerted her someone rang the front doorbell. Security video showed a white female, later identified as McGuire, ringing the doorbell and then moments later the security system indicated the back door was opened. The woman contacted her live-in boyfriend who came home to check.
He reported finding the back door standing open and several items missing from the residence, including a 20-gauge shotgun, a .40-caliber pistol, numerous rounds of ammunition, various items of clothing, speakers, a gold man’s watch, an “Alice in Wonderland” jewelry box, several items of jewelry and an iPad, with a total value of $2,760.
The next day, McGuire was taken into custody outside her residence on Lakeshore Drive on unrelated warrants. She was found to be in possession of several of the items taken in the burglary on Moonlight Bay, including the jewelry box and the shotgun. When questioned, she admitted to the burglary and described in detail many of the items taken.
McGuire also admitted to the burglary at Sunset Bay Road after being shown photographs of the residence which she only “vaguely remembered” because of the flower beds outside.
McGuire has remained in custody on zero bond after her arrest Nov. 29 and was set to stand trial May 9 on some of the charges and on June 8 on the other charges.