Community Corner

Convicted Thief Admits to Carrying Stolen Goods

Joshua Michael Stinson, 23, admitted to stealing items from a parked car June 28 on East Second Street when he was arrested by Lansdale Police on a Montgomery Township warrant. He will have a hearing on Montgomery Township charges on Thursday

A man wanted in on misdemeanor theft and identity theft charges was nabbed by Lansdale Police July 2, and admitted to stealing credit cards from a car parked on East Second Street during the overnight of June 28.

Lansdale Police have issued an arrest warrant against Joshua Michael Stinson, 23, who has no address, charging him with the following misdemeanors: Two counts of Theft by Unlawful Taking, Theft of Property Lost, Two counts of Receiving Stolen Property and Theft from a Motor Vehicle.

Stinson will be arraigned on the Lansdale charges on July 12, police said. He reamins incarcerated at Montgomery County Prison on a probation detainer, police said.

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Stinson will have a hearing on Thursday at 11:45 a.m. before District Judge Andrea Duffy on three misdemeanor charges filed by Montgomery Township: Theft by Unlawful Taking of Moveable Property, Access Device Fraud and Identity Theft.

On July 2 at 2 p.m., Lansdale Police arrested Stinson after seeing him walking on Walnut Street, police said.

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In his possession were credit cards, gift cards and a cell phone, police said. With the exception of the cell phone and one of the gift cards, the remaining property had been reported stolen June 29 by a resident of the 100 block of East Second Street, police said. 

The resident told police the items were stolen from a car parked by their house between the overnight hours of June 28 and June 29.

Police used the recovered phone to contact the owner, who was not aware his phone was stolen, police said. The owner thought the phone was in a friend's car where he had left it the night before on July 4, police said. 

Police said Stinson admitted to the thefts and was released to Montgomery Township Police on their warrant and a Montgomery County Probation detainer, police said.

Stinson has been tried on criminal charges in Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas in four separate incidents since March 2011.

In November 2011, he pleaded guilty to theft by unlawful taking stemming from a July 2011 arrest in Lansdale. He was placed on two years probation, according to court records.

In November 2011, he also pleaded guilty to theft and defiant trespassing stemming from a March 2011 arrest in Montgomery Township. He was put on consecutive one-year probations on each charge, according to court records.

In November 2011, he pleaded guilty to theft from a motor vehicle, stemming from a November 2010 arrest in Montgomery Township. He was sentenced to a minimum of 130 days in prison, according to court records.

In July 2011, Stinson pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, use and possession of drug paraphernalia and allowing illegal use of a license plate, stemming from an arrest in Hilltown Township, according to court records. He was sentenced in Bucks County Court of Common Pleas to one year probation and a maximum of time served to 23 months in prison, according to court records.

Stinson has three active cases open in Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, all related to a request for special probation and parole supervision, according to court records.


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