Man Sentenced to 1 ½ Years After Pleading Guilty to Burglarizing, Vandalizing Norfolk Auto Body Shop in 2024

NORFOLK, Va. — William Thomas Wright, 32, was sentenced to serve one and a half years in prison after he pleaded guilty to burglarizing and vandalizing an auto repair shop where he attempted to steal a dirt bike last year.

Around 1:10 a.m. on April 3, 2024, Mr. Wright, broke into and vandalized an auto repair shop on North Military Highway. Norfolk Police officers responded to the alarm from the shop, and they found Mr. Wright in the rear fenced-in lot, saw that the building’s rear garage bay doors had been opened, and saw that there was significant damage inside. Surveillance footage from inside the shop showed Mr. Wright stealing a small dirt bike, which the police found outside along with a jumpstarting box that Mr. Wright had brought and left near the fence where he entered the property.

The officers detained Mr. Wright and searched him, finding a lock that he had cut open, and his backpack, which contained burglarious tools, multiple identification cards, Mr. Wright’s own wallet, pieces of drywall, and a pipe for smoking crack cocaine. Mr. Wright was transported to the Police Operations Center where he spoke to investigators and confessed to committing the burglary.

On March 11, 2025, Mr. Wright entered an agreement to plead guilty to felony burglary and vandalism as well as misdemeanor petit larceny, pay $1,000 in restitution to the shop, and face an active sentence of up to one year and 11 months in prison, which was the midpoint of his state sentencing guidelines. In exchange for his guilty pleas, the Commonwealth agreed to the dismissal of an additional vandalism charge. Judge David W. Lannetti accepted Mr. Wright’s plea agreement.

On June 13, Mr. Wright’s defense attorney argued that Mr. Wright should serve a sentence via home electronic monitoring or be authorized work release if sentenced to jail, and the Commonwealth argued that he should serve the sentence suggested by his guidelines. After hearing the arguments, Judge Lannetti sentenced Mr. Wright to serve one year and six months in prison and suspended another four years and six months in custody on the conditions that Mr. Wright be of uniform good behavior and comply with supervised probation for up to three years following his release. The judge also authorized Mr. Wright to serve a shorter sentence of one year if he completes the Residential Substance Abuse Treatment program while in custody.

“While I have no doubt that Mr. Wright’s substance-use disorder propelled him to commit this crime, it does not give him permission to commit a burglary, and he rightly earned a prison sentence for the crime he committed,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi. “I support the judge’s grace in offering Mr. Wright a shorter sentence if he completes drug treatment in jail. We want two things: For Mr. Wright to pay a price for the crime he committed and for Mr. Wright to acquire the tools necessary for him not to commit this crime again. We will continue to balance accountability with treatment in the cases we prosecute and the sentences we seek.”

Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Victoria T. Vaccaro prosecuted Mr. Wright’s case, and Norfolk Police Detective John A. Schraft Jr. led the investigation.

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March 20, 2025

Man Pleads Guilty to Burglarizing, Vandalizing Norfolk Auto Body Shop in 2024

NORFOLK, Va. — William Thomas Wright, 32, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, March 11, to burglary, felony vandalism, and petit larceny after he broke into an auto repair shop and attempted to steal a dirt bike.

Around 1:10 a.m. on April 3, 2024, Mr. Wright, broke into and vandalized an auto repair shop on North Military Highway. Norfolk Police officers responded to the alarm from the shop, and they found Mr. Wright in the rear fenced-in lot, saw that the building’s rear garage bay doors had been opened, and saw that there was significant damage inside. Surveillance footage from inside the shop showed Mr. Wright stealing a small dirt bike, which the police found outside along with a jumpstarting box that Mr. Wright had brought and left near the fence where he entered the property.

The officers detained Mr. Wright and searched him, finding a lock that he had cut open, and his backpack, which contained burglarious tools, multiple identification cards, Mr. Wright’s own wallet, pieces of drywall, and a pipe for smoking crack cocaine. Mr. Wright was transported to the Police Operations Center where he spoke to investigators and confessed to committing the burglary.

On March 11, Mr. Wright entered an agreement to plead guilty to felony burglary and vandalism as well as misdemeanor petit larceny in exchange for the Commonwealth agreeing to dismiss an additional vandalism charge. Sentencing will be left to the judge up to the midpoint of Mr. Wright’s state sentencing guidelines. Mr. Wright also agreed to pay $1,000 in restitution to the auto repair shop. Judge David W. Lannetti accepted Mr. Wright’s plea agreement and set his sentencing hearing on June 13.

“Thanks to cameras and the prompt work of the Norfolk Police, officers caught Mr. Wright red-handed and were able to recover the property Mr. Wright was intending to steal,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney. “At sentencing we will recommend a sentence consistent with Mr. Wright’s actions and criminal history. We hope that Mr. Wright, should he suffer from substance-use disorder, will take this opportunity to address that problem so that he can do better when he returns to the community.”

Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Victoria T. Vaccaro is prosecuting Mr. Wright’s case, and Norfolk Police Detective John A. Schraft Jr. led the investigation.

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