2 Pageland men convicted of burglary, larceny

Two Pageland men who failed to show up for their trial have been convicted of second-degree burglary and petit larceny, according to a press release from Assistant 4th Circuit Solicitor Adam M. Foard.

Juan Maroles, 18, and Juan Sanchez, 22, were charged in connection with an August 2008 theft in Pageland. Pageland Police Sgt. Nathan Brucke caught Maroles and Sanchez enteringa storage unit rented by Lance Crackers during the nighttime by breaking a lock and placed a quantity of Lance products in their vehicle. After being detained, Sanchez confessed to the crime and gave a statement regarding Maroles’ role.

Fourth Circuit Court Judge Paul M. Burch handed down a sealed sentence during general sessions court in Chesterfield County on Wednesday which will be opened Thursday afternoon, now that the defendants have been located.

“These two young men thought they could break the law and never have to face their day in court,” Foard said in the release. “Both failed to appear for scheduled mandatory court appearances and did not respond to their lawyer’s repeated attempts to contact them.

“Public Defender Jason Turnblad was relieved of his duty to represent them by Judge Burch. We were left with no choice but to have a trial without them being present. You cannot fail to appear and then expect that the law will not catch up with you.”