When Nathan Charles Bodner broke into a Centreville sports club, a year ago, he was dressed as a woman — complete with wig and high heels. But when he appeared in court last week to plead guilty to his crimes, he came as a man: He wore a Fairfax County jail jumpsuit and his dark hair was shaved closely against his head.
Bodner, 25, of 13058 Cobble Lane in Centreville's Rockpointe community, has an extensive criminal record including previous convictions for grand larceny, embezzlement and two counts of burglary.
Last Wednesday, Oct. 9, in Circuit Court, he pleaded guilty to six more crimes — three burglaries and three larcenies. He now faces a possible seven decades in prison.
Before Judge Dennis Smith accepted Bodner's pleas, he asked him, "Do you understand that, on each of the burglary charges, you could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years in prison, and on the petit-larceny, third offenses, the maximum you could get is five years for each?" Bodner answered "yes."
Smith warned that he could run the sentences consecutively so they'd amount to 75 years in prison." He then asked, "Are you entering these pleas of guilt voluntarily and because you are guilty as charged?" Again, Bodner replied "yes."
The Washington Sports Club, in the Old Centreville Crossing Shopping Center, was burglarized several times during fall 2001. So police from the Fair Oaks District Station set up surveillance there and nabbed Bodner.
He was the maintenance engineer for all the Washington Sports Clubs and worked at the Centreville location. Last September, he was transferred elsewhere, but he kept his key. In court last week, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Michael Ben'Ary presented details of the case against him.
He said that, on Sept. 8, 2001, the defendant entered the business by the back and, once inside, sprayed mustard around and threw pretzels on the floor. Bodner then helped himself to $50 from the cash register. On Oct. 19, said Ben'Ary, "He entered the Centreville location after hours and without authority. On a surveillance video, he was seen taking $50 from the cash register. He was dressed as a woman, at the time."
Then on Oct. 28, around 1 a.m., Bodner was spotted entering the business with a key. "The police had set up a stakeout, and they apprehended him as he left," said Ben'Ary. "He had about $40 in marked bills on his person." Earlier, police had planted the bills in the cash register.
Again, Bodner was all dolled-up as a woman. When they caught him, said police, he was sporting a long, brown, women's wig, black pants and a yellow T-shirt. Completing the ensemble were high-heeled pumps, and under his shirt was a bra which had been stuffed to give the appearance of a woman's figure.
Officers surrounded the building, and then a K-9 officer and his police dog entered the premises. Police arrested Bodner as he tried to flee through the rear door.
They charged him with five counts of burglary, four counts of larceny — one grand larceny and three petit larcenies — plus one count of possession of burglary tools. As if that weren't enough, Bodner is in even worse hot water because he's a convicted felon.
Since he has a previous record — 1995, '97 and '98 convictions in Fairfax County Court for burglary, embezzlement and grand larceny — his three new counts of petit larceny are felonies. According to the law, if a person is convicted of two larcenies, any third or subsequent larceny — regardless of the amount — is considered a felony.
Following his latest arrest, Bodner was held at the Adult Detention Center, but disappeared Oct. 31, 2001, after being released on bond, and didn't show up for two court dates in February and May of this year. A bench warrant was issued for his arrest, and he was finally apprehended on May 30.
Bodner appeared Sept. 10 in General District Court and, at that time, two of the burglary charges against him were dropped, as were the one grand-larceny charge and the charge of possessing burglary tools.
The other three burglary charges and the three petit-larceny charges remained, and the grand jury later indicted him on them all. After Judge Smith accepted his guilty pleas to these charges, last week, he set Bodner's sentencing for Dec. 20.