HOT SPRINGS -- A Hot Springs man has received a 32-year prison term for robbing the same home multiple times.
Phillip Wayne Burgess, 35, who lists a Donnie Court address, pleaded guilty to two felony counts of residential burglary, each punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Jurors recommended the maximum of 20 years on one count and 12 years on the other, to run consecutively.
The jury also recommended the maximum fine of $15,000 on each count, Prosecuting Attorney Terri Harris said Thursday. Harris said "it was a good verdict" in light of the fact that Burgess had no previous felony convictions.
Harris said the burglaries Burgess was charged with occurred on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day 2014 and involved a house under renovation.
"There were a lot of family heirlooms, with about $50,000 in losses, and the victim was not reimbursed for that," Harris said.
According to an affidavit, about 9:30 p.m. Dec. 25, 2014, Garland County sheriff's Deputy Richard Huffman responded to a burglary in progress at a residence in the 1800 block of Marion Anderson Road and upon arrival saw Burgess leaving the house.
Burgess claimed he was there doing tile work and had been hired by someone named Joe whom he met on Facebook.
Huffman spoke to the owner of the residence, who said no one was supposed to be there and that he didn't know anyone named Joe. He also noted the house had been broken into several times in the previous week.
Metro on 05/02/2016