Mitchell A. Dawson

WARSAW — A Warsaw man received a suspended sentence for his involvement in stealing and selling copper wire from the former Arnolt building.

Mitchell A. Dawson, 38, 5829 W. CR 100N, Warsaw, was charged with burglary, a level 5 felony. Judd Emery Metz, Goshen; Kyle Duff, Warsaw; and Allison Foster, Claypool, were also involved in the case and have all been sentenced.

On Jan. 21, an officer with the Warsaw Police Department received information regarding burglary and theft occurring at 2525 E. Durbin St., the former Arnolt building. The caretaker of the property said people were entering the building and stealing copper wire and other metals.

According to court documents, the officer placed surveillance cameras at the building and saw several people entering the building with their faces covered. The officer spoke with Dawson and said that tools with his name on them were found inside the abandoned building. Dawson said that he, Duff and Metz entered the building to strip copper wire. According to Dawson, the trio stripped approximately $10,000 worth of copper from the building over several months.

Kosciusko Superior Court Three Judge Joe Sutton gave Dawson a four-year sentence at the Indiana Department of Corrections, all suspended on formal probation. Dawson and the three co-defendants in this case must collectively pay $4,010.37 in restitution to Arnolt Corporation.

Metz was sentenced in this case on Aug. 14 and received a 2 1/2 year suspended sentence at the Kosciusko County Jail. Foster was sentenced in this case on July 9 and received a one year sentence at the KCJ, with 289 days suspended on probation. Duff was sentenced in this case on July 2 and received a two year sentence at the KCJ, with 661 days suspended on probation.