Woman busted for Sarto B&E, ATM theft nets jail time

A Brandon woman will spend time behind bars after breaking into a liquor store and stealing an ATM in the RM of Hanover.

Chelsey Flewelling pleaded guilty to one count of break and enter with intent. Provincial court Judge Sidney Lerner sentenced her to six months in provincial jail and 12 months supervised probation in a Steinbach court on Sept. 26.

Crown attorney Jennifer Neufeld read the facts for the court.

RCMP responded to an alarm at the Sarto General Store on Sept 25, 2023, at 7:33 a.m. to find the main doors had jumper cables attached, and its glass was broken. Surveillance video footage of the incident played for the court showed Flewelling, wearing a yellow hoodie and pants, and a man, identified as Randall Schaffer, tie jumper cables to the metal gate blocking the front doors, after Schaffer is shown smashing the door’s glass with a sledgehammer. The pair tried, unsuccessfully, ripping the metal gate down by using a truck to pull the jumper cables.

Footage showed Schaffer propping the gate up so Flewelling could get inside the store. Once inside, she grabbed alcohol bottles and checked the cash register. She later knocked an ATM over and opened the shop’s back door for Schaffer to bring in a dolly to load it into the back of the truck. Police identified both Flewelling and Schaffer through social media posts, after RCMP checked the truck’s license plates.

Neufeld told the court the damage to the business and theft was valued at $8,050, with $380 stolen from the ATM and $202 worth of alcohol taken.

Flewelling was arrested on Dec. 20, 2023, after a warrant was executed, and she was released from custody, court heard.

“She is actively engaged in this break and enter the whole way through, and it really wouldn’t have been as successful as it was, but for her involvement,” Neufeld said, noting that the crime appeared planned rather than spontaneous.

Neufeld asked for one year in custody, 18 months of supervised probation and the collection of $4,025, half of the restitution amount.

Defense lawyer Tara Walker argued the crime wasn’t the “most egregious break and enter that we’ve seen,” and a “spur of the moment thing” based on their actions during the incident.

“If you came planning to enter into a compound, one would think you might bring a chain with a hook on it, that would hook to the hitch on the back of the truck,” Walker said. “That would be far more effective than a pair of jumper cables tied around it.”

Flewelling, originally from Thunder Bay, developed an addiction to Oxycontin, after being prescribed it for an injury at 22-years-old, Walker told the court. That addiction caused her life to “spiral,” and Flewelling believes it’s the cause for the crimes, Walker said. Flewelling already sought addictions treatment at Teen Challenge in Brandon, court heard.

Walker suggested a sentence of 12 months probation.

Lerner differed from both Neufeld and Walker’s argued sentences in his decision. Flewelling’s actions were “just too serious,” to not warrant time in custody, he said, but the lack of a criminal record and steps taken with Teen Challenge “merit a reduction” from Neufeld’s recommendation, Lerner told the court.

“There’s no sort of fumbling or attempt; she’s moving pretty quickly and moving pretty efficiently. All of that supports, in my view, something more than just a spur of the moment,” Lerner said. “And of course, the actual loss is not insignificant.”

He also required Flewelling to pay half of the restitution amount to the Sarto General Store.

Schaffer hasn’t been sentenced yet due to some charges still pending.