Gallia County Prosecuting Attorney, Jason D. Holdren, announces that Shawn L. Cox, age 36, of Gallipolis, Ohio, was recently sentenced to sixteen (16) months in prison by Judge Margaret Evans of the Gallia County Common Pleas Court. Cox was sentenced after being convicted of the following charges: Breaking and Entering, Theft, and Possession of Heroin; all felonies of the fifth degree.
On October 22, 2017, Cox stole two Husqvarna saws, valued at $2,200.00, from the loading dock at Thomas Do-It Center in Gallipolis, Ohio. As a result, Cox was indicted by the Gallia County Grand Jury in November of 2017. After being released on bond, Cox continued to victimize the community. On December 8, 2017, Cox committed a breaking and entering offense into a garage on Creekview Drive in Gallipolis, Ohio. While committing the crime, Cox noticed that he was photographed on a trail camera, so he stole the camera. Upon fleeing the residence, Cox’s vehicle was stopped by members of the Gallia County Sheriff’s Office and the camera was located in the vehicle. Cox was indicted for his additional crimes by the Gallia County Grand Jury in December of 2017.
“Based on the quick response by members of the Sheriff’s Office, Mr. Cox’s crimes were quickly solved and all items stolen from both crimes were recovered and returned to the owners,” stated Holdren.
“I am very thankful for the swift justice in these cases. The quick resolution can be attributed to great communications starting with the victim and carrying all the way through the final prosecution,” added Sheriff Matt Champlin.
“I would like to thank Thomas Do-It Center for assisting law enforcement in this matter and utilizing social media to help identify Mr. Cox,” stated Holdren. “I would also like to thank all of the officers that worked very hard on these cases, including Sheriff Matt Champlin, Dep. Amanda Wickline, Sgt. Jason Brown, Det. Chris Gruber, Dep. Chad Wallace, Dep. Bryan Seagraves, Lt. Kevin Werry, Dep. Kenny Deckard, and Chief Josh Davies (Rio Grande Police Department).”