Man Sentenced to More Than 1 ½ Years for Grand Larceny, Failing to Appear, Being Felon in Possession of Firearm
NORFOLK, Va. — Jermele Antwan Farmer, 35, was sentenced on Thursday to serve one year and seven months in prison for stealing merchandise from the Norfolk Home Depot last year, failing to appear in court for his resulting grand larceny charge, and being in possession of a firearm at the time he was taken into custody.
On July 25, 2023, Mr. Farmer loaded more than $1200 worth of Home Depot merchandise into a shopping cart and left the store with the items without paying. The store’s loss prevention officer identified Mr. Farmer through security camera footage and reported him to Norfolk Police, who secured a charge against Mr. Farmer for felony grand larceny. On Sept. 19, Mr. Farmer failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing for that offense and was charged with failing to appear. On Feb. 5, Norfolk Police officers located Mr. Farmer and served him with his outstanding arrest warrant for failing to appear. Mr. Farmer had a firearm in his pocket at that time, and because he is a previously convicted felon Mr. Farmer was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Mr. Farmer pleaded guilty on Thursday to felony grand larceny, misdemeanor failure to appear, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Mr. Farmer agreed to be sentenced to serve one year and seven months in custody with another four years and six months suspended on the conditions that he complete three years of uniform good behavior and one year of supervised probation. Judge Everett A. Martin Jr. accepted Mr. Farmer’s plea agreement, found him guilty of those charges, and sentenced Mr. Farmer per the agreement.
“People who commit retail theft drive up prices for honest consumers and endanger the viability of local businesses,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Ramin Fatehi. “Mr. Farmer, who has a prior felony record, has earned a trip to the penitentiary for this crime and for his illegal weapons possession.”
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Anthony J. Balady prosecuted Mr. Farmer’s case on behalf of the Commonwealth, and Norfolk Police Detective Nathan R. Banks led the investigation.
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