Man, 19, gets probation for burglaries in Crystal Lake, Cary; chance to ‘get his life back on track’: lawyer

A 19-year-old man formerly of Algonquin, who was accused with another man of burglarizing at least six vehicles in Crystal Lake and Cary, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary and was sentenced to two years of probation.

In exchange for his guilty plea, additional charges against Lucazie Sacco, 19, were dismissed, including attempted residential burglary, criminal trespass and possession of burglary tools, which were alleged in complaints filed by the Lakewood Police Department in March 2023. He’d also been charged by Crystal Lake Police with theft of stolen property, burglary and possession of burglary tools to steal a vehicle, according to complaints filed in the McHenry County court.

Along with his probation, Sacco also is ordered to pay restitution of about $2,600 between the two victims in Crystal Lake and Cary. He was ordered to continue with weekly therapy sessions and follow all recommendations. He is not to consume any alcohol or illicit substances, must submit to random screens, continue with efforts to get a job, keep a job diary, and abide by a 10:30 p.m. curfew, according to the judgment signed by Judge Mark Gerhardt.

Sacco admitted to burglarizing a 2015 Kia in Cary and a 2017 Hyundai Elantra in Crystal Lake, according to court documents. His attorney, Dominic Buttitta Jr., said he and Sacco are “pleased with the outcome of the case.”

“My client is a vibrant young man that was in the wrong place, at the wrong time, with the wrong people,” Buttitta said. “He made a mistake and fortunately is being given an opportunity to get his life back on track without the imposition of any prison term.”

A second man, Victor A. Diaz, 22, of Crystal Lake, also was charged with the same offenses in March 2023. He pleaded guilty in January to residential burglary and was sentenced to five years in prison. Diaz also pleaded guilty to theft of between $10,000 and $100,000 in an unrelated case from 2022. In that case, he was accused of exerting “unauthorized control of a 2021 Kia Seltos” when the owner “left the vehicle unattended outside a 7-Eleven convenience store at 60 West Terra Cotta Ave., Crystal Lake,” according to the criminal complaint. He is serving this time concurrent with the burglary sentence and also was ordered to pay more than $6,000 in restitution, according to court records.

Diaz’s attorney, Brian Stevens, said Diaz was sentenced to prison time due to his criminal history. He also does not have much prison time left to serve after receiving credit for days held in the county jail and he “decided it was in his best interest to resolve his case at that time,” Stevens said.

Prior to the arrests in Crystal Lake, Lakewood Police Chief Mike Roth said officers from his department responded at 3:43 a.m. March 31, 2023, to an attempted residential burglary in the 7000 block of Longmoor Drive. At the time, Roth said it was the fourth such residential burglary in Lakewood since late January of that year. he said the Longmoor Drive suspects fled into the McHenry County Sheriff’s jurisdiction.