A Centreville man was indicted by the grand jury last week on two counts of grand larceny. He is Matthew Pickerel, 21, of the Lakeside Apartments in Centre Ridge.
On Nov. 1, 2004, a man reported a theft of two firearms from his automobile while it was parked near his home on New Braddock Road in Centreville. He stated that, between 1 and 10 a.m., he left his pump-action, 12-gauge, Remington shotgun and his Walther .22-caliber automatic pistol in his 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe SUV. The firearms were left unlocked inside the vehicle.
In a Nov. 5, 2004 affidavit for a search warrant, Fairfax County police Det. Lincoln Kieffer stated that an informant reported seeing Pickerel at a Centreville apartment between Nov. 1 and 4. At that time, wrote Kieffer, "he observed Pickerel in possession of a black, Remington shotgun with a light attached to the pump, and a black, .22-caliber automatic pistol."
"PICKEREL [allegedly told the informant] that he stole the two firearms from a Chevrolet Suburban while he had been stealing from cars parked in the Centreville area," continued the detective. "The two firearms that were reported stolen by [the victim] match the firearms in Pickerel's possession."
Police arrested him Nov. 5 and, following a Jan. 26 appearance in General District Court, his two grand larceny charges were sent to the grand jury — which indicted him last Tuesday, Feb. 22. He's slated to enter a plea March 9, in Circuit Court.
<tgl> — Bonnie Hobbs