He changed his plea to guilty for handling stolen goods

Carlos Beltran was sentenced to 8 months in prison this afternoon after he changed his not guilty plea to guilty for handling stolen goods.

On August 12, 2013, Eric Pott, a resident of E Street in Buttonwood Bay, reported to police that when he arrived at his house earlier that day, he was stunned to discover that his 32″ flat screen television, and his touch screen laptop computer and speakers had been stolen. Pott told police that he had left his house secured on August 6, when he had left for Guatemala.

Police launched an investigation, which led them to Beltran’s house at #1693 Urban Avenue in the Buttonwood Bay Area, where the stolen items were found on a sofa in the house. Beltran was not at home when the house was searched, but arrived several minutes later, at which point he was informed of the offense.

When Beltran was initially arraigned on August 14, he had pleaded not guilty to burglary and handling stolen goods, but after changing his plea, he told the court, “I did not steal the items; I was trying to help out a friend by keeping the things there”.

Magistrate Leslie Hamilton then sentenced Beltran to 8 months for handling stolen goods and the burglary charge was then withdrawn from him. The sentence became effective on August 14, 2013, the date he was remanded for the crimes.