By Shawn Stinson
A Grant County man sentenced for his role in a November 2020 burglary in the Onego area returned to court earlier this month.
Shawn Derick Mowery, 31, of Big Sky Drive, Petersburg, requested a reduction of sentence. Mowery was represented by his attorney Nathan T. Bennett. The state was represented by April Mallow, Pendleton County prosecuting attorney.
Mowery was convicted on June 28, 2021, of two counts of burglary, two counts of entering without breaking a building other than a dwelling and one count of conspiracy. Each count of burglary carried a sentence of one to 15 years, each count of entering without breaking a building other than a dwelling carried a sentence of one to 10 years and the count of conspiracy carried a sentence of one to 5 years.
Less than three months later, Mowery agreed to enter the GOALS (Getting Over Addictive Lifestyles Successfully) program and “upon completion of the program, (the) defendant shall be returned to the court for the purpose of a hearing on the defendant’s Rule 35(b) motion for reduction of sentence.”
Bennett informed the court Mowery completed the GOALS program on April 1 and submitted supporting documentation. In addition, Bennett said Mowery was accepted into Recovery Point West Virginia. Recovery Point is a nine-to 12-month rehabilitation program.
Mallow did not object to the motion or Mowery’s participation in the Recovery Point program. Mallow recommended Mowery be placed on supervised probation “for a period of seven years.”
Parsons agreed to suspend Mowery’s jail sentence and place him on supervised probation for seven years. Mowery was also ordered to complete the drug rehabilitation program at Recovery Point West Virginia and report to the Pendleton County Probation Office within 24 hours of completion or leaving the program. Parsons also ordered the staff at Recovery Point West Virginia would be responsible for transporting Mowery to their program or members of the WVDOC if the staff at Recovery Point West Virginia is unable.
The order was filed on April 18 by Shalee Wilburn, Pendleton County Circuit Clerk.
Authorities alleged Mowery and Faustino “Tony” Jason Stokes of Elkins participated in a burglary of a residence in the Onego area with Staci Lynn Casstevens and Martin Allen Wimer.
A family friend of the property owner noticed the residence had been broken into and several items had been removed. The individual said the basement door had been locked the last time he visited the residence, but when he returned, he noted it was unlocked. In addition, the individual stated the breakers in the breaker box had been “flipped off” to turn the power off in the residence. It was noted all of the food in the refrigerator and freezer had spoiled due to the power being off.
A list of the property believed to have been removed from the residence was provided to the authorities. It was estimated the value of the items was more than $1,000. The family friend informed authorities Wimer may have been involved in the burglary due to being at the property previously with his family and having knowledge of the residence.
A neighbor told authorities on the evening of Nov. 4, 2020, he confronted an unknown male and another male he later identified as Wimer, on the property. The neighbor stated he informed the pair he was calling the authorities. He also noted there was a white Dodge vehicle and an ATV parked at the residence. Authorities said the Dodge vehicle was no longer there when they arrived at the property.
In his report, Trooper First Class David Trenton wrote fellow Trooper Kevin Raymond responded to the residence following a phone call on Nov. 4, 2020, from the neighbor reporting suspicious activity on the property. Raymond informed Trenton he had located a white Dodge vehicle later that evening matching the description provided by the neighbor. Raymond stated the driver of the vehicle identified himself as Stokes.
During a statement to Trenton more than a month following the incident, Wimer said he, Casstevens, Mowery and Stokes gathered later in the evening at his residence with the items.
