String of thefts nets 10-month jail term
A Kelowna man was sentenced Thursday to 10 months in jail for a string of thefts and a break-in.
Denver Storm Moore, 23, earlier pleaded guilty to four thefts at various stores in Kelowna, breaking and entering to a commercial property in West Kelowna, possession of a controlled substance and breach of probation.
On Feb. 17, 2017, a Lordco employee called police to report a theft.
A police officer spotted a male matching the description of the suspect, later identified as Moore, running with an unknown male chasing him.
Moore attempted to climb a fence, and the officer yelled at him that he was under arrest, said Crown prosecutor Grant Gray.
Moore began running again, and the officer yelled at a bystander to push Moore against a wall, which the bystander did.
“It didn’t stop him, but it gave the officer enough time to get close enough that he was able to tackle him from behind,” said Gray.
“There was a fair bit of struggle with police, to the point where the bystander actually intervened and assisted the officer.”
Moore surrendered and was arrested.
He was found in possession of a three-pack of flashlights, mechanic’s gloves and a small amount of crystal methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
He was charged with theft under $5,000 and possession of a controlled substance.
On June 11, 2017, Moore was charged with breaching a condition of his probation to not consume alcohol or non-prescribed drugs when he was found consuming marijuana in downtown Kelowna.
On June 26, 2017, Moore was charged with stealing from Winners in Kelowna.
He was seen in the store picking up baseball hats, said Gray.
“He started removing price tags from them and putting the price tags in his pockets,” he said.
Moore exited the store wearing one of the hats, with four more under his arm.
He was stopped outside the store by two employees.
“Apparently, he was being quite unco-operative,” said Gray.
A police officer arrived and handcuffed Moore, then took him to the store’s loss prevention office.
On Aug. 23, 2017, Moore stole items from the Wild Kingdom sex shop in Kelowna.
A couple of days later, the owner of the store called police to report
the theft, which was discovered after reviewing video surveillance footage.
Police identified the suspect in the video as Moore.
On Aug. 26, 2017, Moore was charged with stealing from Telus in Kelowna.
At 11:15 a.m., police were called to Telus on Harvey Avenue via a panic alarm.
Employees reported a male had entered the store, stolen an item and fled on foot.
“Prior to leaving, the male indicated to the staff that they better not try to stop him because he had a knife,” said Gray.
Moore was located a short time later in the parking lot of Orchard Park Shopping Centre.
He was found in possession of two cellphones, a cellphone battery pack and a cord for the battery pack.
On Dec. 14, 2017, Moore was charged with breaking and entering into Acorn Plaza in West Kelowna.
At 4 a.m., Moore broke the glass of the front entrance to the plaza and entered the building.
Once inside, he could be seen on video attempting to enter businesses inside the plaza.
At 5:25 a.m., Moore was seen breaking into a janitor’s room, stealing keys and attempting to gain access to two businesses.
Just before 6:30 a.m., a man called police to report the front door of the plaza had been smashed.
Police located two pairs of pants inside, along with a folded piece of paper, which turned out to be a notice for a promise to appear in court with Moore’s name on it.
Moore was arrested at 10 a.m. that day.
“He was clearly going through a psychotic state,” said defence lawyer Victor Janicki. “Most people don’t break into a building and leave their clothes behind. I really don’t think he was thinking clearly whatsoever.”
Moore has been in custody since Dec. 14.
The Crown proposed a global sentence of 327 days, minus credit for time served, with 18 months’ probation, while the defence proposed a 220-day global sentence.
On Thursday, a judge sentenced Moore to 21 days in jail for the Lordco theft and seven days in jail for the possession of crystal meth, to be served concurrent to each other, along with 21 days in jail for breaching probation and possession of a controlled substance, 30 days in jail for the Winners theft, 45 days in jail for the Wild Kingdom theft, 60 days in jail for the Telus theft and 120 days in jail for the break and enter, for a total of 297 days.
He granted Moore 150 days credit for time served, giving Moore 147 new days to serve in jail, along with an 18-month probation.
“Mr. Moore is becoming a danger to the public,” said the judge.
Moore was previously convicted for robbing the House of Knives in Kelowna on April 8, 2016, for which he was sentenced to 182 days in jail.
He was also found guilty of possession of stolen property on Dec. 24, 2015, theft under $5,000 on Feb. 22, 2016, an assault on Feb. 24, 2016, theft under $5,000 on Feb. 24, 2016, and multiple breaches of probation.