Michael Larreau, 25 of Arnold, kicked off the morning of criminal cases on Thursday, March 24 in Custer County District Court as he appeared for arraignment. Larreau is facing alleged charges of burglary (Class IIA felony) and criminal mischief (Class IV felony) but will have to wait on an official arraignment as a competency evaluation has yet to be completed. Larreau will appear back in court on April 21 at 9:30 AM for a hearing to determine competency and to be arraigned on the alleged charges. If found guilty of all charges, he could be sentenced to up to 22 years in prison.
Connor Capps, 22 from California, appeared on a single charge of possession of a controlled substance-cocaine (Class IIA felony). Through a plea deal, Capps pled no contest to the lone charge and in return Capps’ attorney, Christopher Wickham stated the Custer County Attorney’s Office would have no objection to probation/deferred judgment.
According to the factual basis, read by Custer County Deputy Attorney Kayla Haberstick, Capps was the passenger in a vehicle that had been pulled over by a Custer County Sheriff’s Deputy on Highway 92 in November 2021. After smelling the odor of marijuana in the car, the deputy searched the vehicle where he found 13 grams of cocaine in small baggies that tested positive for cocaine. Capps admitted to purchasing the cocaine and he was subsequently arrested.
Judge Karin Noakes ordered a pre-sentence investigation be conducted prior to sentencing on May 19 at 9:45 AM. If the court elects to not follow the plea agreement, Capps could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
Tanner Bowers, 30 of Arnold, appeared for a progression conference as he faced charges of alleged burglary and trespassing. Deputy Attorney Haberstick informed the court that Bowers had been accepted into the North Central Nebraska Problem Solving Court and would be pleading guilty to one of the charges of burglary (Class IIA felony) and the other case would be dismissed. Bowers pled guilty to the single charge of burglary and his sentencing was deferred pending the completion or failure of problem-solving court.
According to the factual basis, Bowers was arrested after he broke into a home through an unsecured window in Arnold. The homeowner had placed a game camera in the home which photographed Bowers entering the residence he did not have permission to be on. When questioned by a CCSO Deputy, Bowers admitted he broke into the home looking for methamphetamine residue. If Bowers is able to complete problem-solving court, the charge will be dropped. However, if he fails the program he will be resentenced on the burglary charge which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
