In sentencing hearings held Thursday at Highland County Common Pleas Court, a Hillsboro man was given a 15-month prison sentence, while two others got community control and another had a warrant out for his arrest after failing to appear in court.

Dusty R. Cox, 40, Hillsboro, was sentenced to 15 months in prison after being convicted of grand theft of a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony.

He was given credit for 76 days of jail time already served.

According to a bill of particulars related to the case, Cox was arrested in Greenfield on Jan. 14, 2021 after being found in the possession of a 2000 Chevrolet Blazer that had been reported stolen from a job site one day earlier.

Upon further investigation of the stolen vehicle, officers found that Cox had a separate Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) plate over the top of the actual VIN plate of the vehicle.

Officers also found a black jacket that was consistent with the clothing worn by the male subject who was caught on security camera video footage.

In another case, Judge Rocky Coss issued a capias warrant for the arrest of Ricky Shinkle, of Hillsboro, who failed to appear for his sentencing hearing Thursday after being convicted on aggravated possession of methamphetamine, a fifth-degree felony.

The bill of particulars said that Shinkle was arrested on July 15, 2020, when an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper noticed the vehicle he was a passenger in was following another vehicle too closely, and upon running the license plate, found that the registered owner of the vehicle had a warrant for his arrest.

After initiating a traffic stop, the vehicle’s owner was arrested and the trooper then handcuffed Shinkle, obtaining his consent to search him.

The trooper found a glass pipe and two small baggies on his person, one containing a white crystal substance and the other with a white residue in it.

Later analysis by the Ohio State Highway Patrol crime lab revealed one of the baggies contained methamphetamine.

Andrew Rackley, 32, Bainbridge, was sentenced to three years community control for his conviction of the fourth-degree felony of grand theft of a motor vehicle.

In the judgment entry imposing community control sanctions, he was also ordered to make monthly payments of $50 starting June 1, 2021 to the Victim Witness Escrow Account, pay $510 in restitution to Greenfield’s Corner Pharmacy in connection with the Ford van he stole, and complete substance abuse disorder treatment through FRS and any recommended aftercare.

Melody Schrader, 40, Washington Court House, was granted admission to the New Way to Recovery Drug Court Docket after her conviction on a fourth-degree felony count of aggravated possession of a fentanyl-related compound.

The court’s judgment entry ordered that she will be under the control and supervision of the Highland County Probation Department for three years, and was ordered comply with all of the conditions set forth in the drug court docket.

The court’s bill of particulars described drugs being found at the Greenfield McDonald’s restaurant on July 15, 2020, when a customer discovered suspected narcotics and turned it over to an employee.

A review of surveillance video showed that Schrader dropped the narcotics on the floor while standing at the cash register, and then reached into her pocket to remove cash.

Later analysis by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) revealed the narcotics contained fentanyl.

Reach Tim Colliver at 937-402-2571.