Richard Blackford

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GALLIPOLIS — A prison sentence was handed down last week to a Gallipolis man accused of breaking into a downtown Gallipolis business while he was out on bond for an earlier break-in at a second local business last year.

Richard V. Blackford, 31, was ordered to serve a one-year sentence in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction after pleading guilty to two counts of breaking and entering in two separate 2012 cases.

Blackford was arrested on September 4 after an indictment alleging that he had broken into the Serendipity Nail Spa and Boutique located at 33 Court Street on July 10 was filed with the common pleas court in August.

The report filed with the Gallipolis Police Department states that the victim in this case reported on July 11, 2012, that an unknown person had entered the property overnight and had removed miscellaneous items valued at over $1,000 from the store.

Blackford was arraigned on these charges following his arrest in September and was later released on an own recognizance bond.

On November 8, the defendant was again arrested, this time by Gallipolis police, following an investigation into the November 3 break-in at Jividen’s Customs in downtown Gallipolis.

A Gallipolis police officer was dispatched to the local business, located at 340 Second Avenue, shortly after 11 a.m. on Saturday, November 3 in reference to a breaking and entering.

The store owner reported to police that she left her property at approximately 9 p.m. on Friday, November 2, and, upon returning to work at approximately 11 a.m., she discovered that the back door of the business had been pried open.

According to the police report, items stolen in this break-in included a laptop computer, an iPhone, a Verizon wireless router and $1,200 in cash.

Blackford’s arrest, subsequent to this second downtown break-in, came through an investigation that led law enforcement to the suspect’s vehicle. A search warrant was received on November 8 by investigators and a search of the vehicle lead to Blackford’s arrest.

Blackford was arraigned on this second breaking and entering charge on December 4 and his bond was set at $5,000, 10 percent.

A negotiated plea was later filed with the clerk of courts office, and, on January 17, the defendant pleaded guilty to both fifth-degree-felony breaking and entering charges in his two separate cases.

In his first case, Blackford was sentenced to serve a six month term in a state prison and was given credit for six days served. He was further ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $500 and was ordered to have no contact with the victims in this case.

As per his second case, Blackford was also sentenced to serve a six month term in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, a sentence to be served consecutively with the sentence in his first case for a total of one year of incarceration. He was given credit for 46 days served.

He was further ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $6,636.67 to the victim and was ordered to have no contact with Jividen’s Customs.

Blackford was also ordered to pay the cost of prosecution.