NEWBURYPORT — A Newbury man has been convicted for his part in last year's wave of thefts that resulted in almost $100,000 in copper wiring being stolen from the docks at city marinas.
Timothy R. Noonan, 35, of 248 High Road, Newbury, was found guilty in Newburyport District Court on one count of larceny of merchandise worth more than $250 in a theft traced back to Jan. 26, 2011, with a worth estimated at between $50,000 to $60,000. Judge Peter Doyle sentenced Noonan to one year's probation. He was also sentenced to a year in jail, though that was suspended — meaning, he will not be jailed initially, but if he violates the terms of his probation, he could be jailed.
Noonan's probation is conditioned upon repaying Newburyport Harbor Marina $5,000 in restitution, as well as remaining drug and alcohol free and completing the level 3 program with the Office of Community Corrections and staying away from the marina.
On a second count of larceny of merchandise worth more than $250 for a theft traced back to Jan. 10, 2011, Noonan was again found guilty but sentenced to pretrial probation with the case continued generally for one year.
According to court documents, Newburyport police officers picked up Noonan's trail on Jan. 26, after witnesses reported suspicious activity on the docks of Newburyport Harbor Marina. According to court documents, one witness saw two men in their 20s or early 30s loading wire into the back of a red Ford Mustang.
When the two suspects noticed the witness, they sped away from the scene; however, the license plate number was seen and given to police.
Newburyport Inspector Brian Brunault found the Mustang in the parking lot of Immaculate Conception Church, and through its registration, traced it to Noonan, who denied involvement at the time.
Noonan was eventually arrested after police used cellphone and text messages to crack the string of thefts.
Newburyport police were able to link the names of the participants with reports from witnesses that placed the suspects at the marinas or at scrap yards selling the copper wiring.
Noonan was arrested in early April, along with two other men and a woman, following the arrests of three other men in February in connection with the wire thefts.
According to police, some of the suspects used saws and other tools to hack through the thick cable containing copper at the marinas. In each case, the cable, which weighed several hundred pounds and was used to run electricity to boats docked at the marinas, took hours to strip from the docks where they were attached, police said.
In the process of the crime spree, the suspects caused more than $200,000 worth of damage to the marinas, according to police.
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