Man pleads guilty in spree of car break-ins in Marengo, gets 8 years in prison

A Wisconsin man has been sentenced to eight years in prison in a plea deal after he was charged with breaking into eight cars in one day last year in Marengo.

Asael I. Rodriguez, 21, of Madison, entered a guilty plea before Judge Mark Gerhardt to one count of armed violence, a Class X felony, Tuesday, court records show. Rodriguez was charged with burglarizing multiple cars while armed with a “bludgeon” and burglarized multiple cars on May 20 in Marengo, according to the amended indictment.

In exchanged for the plea, another Class X felony of armed violence, three counts of vehicle theft, vehicle theft conspiracy, eight counts of burglary and eight counts of theft were dropped, according to court records. Rodriguez has been held in the McHenry County Jail since August, according to court records.

The original indictment alleged Rodriguez stole two cars and broke into eight cars at five different addresses in Marengo in one day, the document showed. Rodriguez stole items from the cars including keys, money, sunglasses, a portable DVD player, wallets, purse and a power tool, according to the original indictment.

A co-defendant, Jimmy Mejia-Villeda, Jr. also is charged in connection to the same crimes. He has pleaded not guilty on all counts and is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 15.