Elkhart Man Gets Three Years For Cigarette Store Burglary
March 30, 2021 at 12:02 a.m.
Elkhart Man Gets Three Years For Cigarette Store Burglary
By Amanda Bridgman-
Michael Nathan Cushing, 30, appeared Monday in front of Kosciusko Superior Court III Judge Chad Miner and was sentenced to four years in the Indiana Department of Corrections with one year suspended for a Level 5 felony burglary conviction; one year in IDOC, all suspended for a Level 6 felony theft conviction; and one year all suspended for a Class A misdemeanor criminal mischief conviction. All sentences run consecutively to each other and consecutive to the current six-year sentence Cushing is serving at Westville Correctional Facility from his role in a robbery in Elkhart County that same night in January 2020.
According to the probable cause affidavit in the case, on Jan. 23, 2020, Warsaw police responded to a burglary at Cigarettes Plus, now known as C's Smoke Shop, and upon arrival found the front entry door glass was shattered. Police also located a hammer laying on the floor inside the business. A review of video surveillance footage showed the suspect - later identified as Cushing - putting cartons of cigarettes and other property from the business into a trash bag. At one point, Cushing walked over to the cash register and, while opening the register, Cushing's face covering fell down and he looked up at the security camera and fled the store, according to court papers.
The damage to the business was $775.03, and the property loss was $1,383.84.
On June 22, 2020, police were called back to the cigarette store for an attempted burglary that happened June 11, 2020, where a man - later identified as Cushing - used bolt cutters to break the glass on the front doors and windows before fleeing in a rented vehicle. Video surveillance footage showed a man wearing blue jeans, a black Old Navy sweatshirt, baseball cap and a dark-colored bandana covering his mouth.
According to court papers, Elkhart police then alerted local authorities that Cushing was found to be driving the rental car and had been arrested for the robbery of a gas station June 12, 2020, where Cushing was reportedly wearing the same clothing he was wearing during the cigarette shop attempted robbery. When police served a search warrant at Cushing's home, according to the affidavit, they located the clothing and smokes.
Cushing was identified as the suspect in the January burglary thanks to his face tattoo.
In court Monday, Cushing apologized and told Miner he was on drugs and is going through the process of getting his face tattoos removed to be a better role model for his two daughters. He also said he is trying to enroll in parenting classes at prison and hopes to complete the Recovery While Incarcerated (RWI) program.
"This is one bad night," Cushing's attorney, Ed Ruiz, said Monday. "I think mounting another five years on top of his six-year sentence is a little excessive. It's not like he committed a crime one day and then two weeks later went somewhere else and committed another crime. He was admittedly on drugs, and fueling his drug habit, got caught in both places."
Kosciusko County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brad Voelz did not object to Cushing completing prison rehabilitation programs and serving his Kosciusko sentence through work release if he qualifies when the time comes. Cushing also is responsible for paying back $1,581.90 in restitution to C's Smoke Shop.
Michael Nathan Cushing, 30, appeared Monday in front of Kosciusko Superior Court III Judge Chad Miner and was sentenced to four years in the Indiana Department of Corrections with one year suspended for a Level 5 felony burglary conviction; one year in IDOC, all suspended for a Level 6 felony theft conviction; and one year all suspended for a Class A misdemeanor criminal mischief conviction. All sentences run consecutively to each other and consecutive to the current six-year sentence Cushing is serving at Westville Correctional Facility from his role in a robbery in Elkhart County that same night in January 2020.
According to the probable cause affidavit in the case, on Jan. 23, 2020, Warsaw police responded to a burglary at Cigarettes Plus, now known as C's Smoke Shop, and upon arrival found the front entry door glass was shattered. Police also located a hammer laying on the floor inside the business. A review of video surveillance footage showed the suspect - later identified as Cushing - putting cartons of cigarettes and other property from the business into a trash bag. At one point, Cushing walked over to the cash register and, while opening the register, Cushing's face covering fell down and he looked up at the security camera and fled the store, according to court papers.
The damage to the business was $775.03, and the property loss was $1,383.84.
On June 22, 2020, police were called back to the cigarette store for an attempted burglary that happened June 11, 2020, where a man - later identified as Cushing - used bolt cutters to break the glass on the front doors and windows before fleeing in a rented vehicle. Video surveillance footage showed a man wearing blue jeans, a black Old Navy sweatshirt, baseball cap and a dark-colored bandana covering his mouth.
According to court papers, Elkhart police then alerted local authorities that Cushing was found to be driving the rental car and had been arrested for the robbery of a gas station June 12, 2020, where Cushing was reportedly wearing the same clothing he was wearing during the cigarette shop attempted robbery. When police served a search warrant at Cushing's home, according to the affidavit, they located the clothing and smokes.
Cushing was identified as the suspect in the January burglary thanks to his face tattoo.
In court Monday, Cushing apologized and told Miner he was on drugs and is going through the process of getting his face tattoos removed to be a better role model for his two daughters. He also said he is trying to enroll in parenting classes at prison and hopes to complete the Recovery While Incarcerated (RWI) program.
"This is one bad night," Cushing's attorney, Ed Ruiz, said Monday. "I think mounting another five years on top of his six-year sentence is a little excessive. It's not like he committed a crime one day and then two weeks later went somewhere else and committed another crime. He was admittedly on drugs, and fueling his drug habit, got caught in both places."
Kosciusko County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brad Voelz did not object to Cushing completing prison rehabilitation programs and serving his Kosciusko sentence through work release if he qualifies when the time comes. Cushing also is responsible for paying back $1,581.90 in restitution to C's Smoke Shop.
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