Man Ordered Back to Court Following Bizarre Crime Spree

A North Canton man was sentenced to 30 days in jail on April 5 after he admitted to stealing random possessions off the lawns and porches of multiple residents in the city.

Samuel Oliva, 64, is serving out his sentence in Stark County Jail, and will face another five months behind bars if he violates a two-year probation imposed by Stark Municipal Court Judge Stephen Belden, according to the Stark County Clerk of Courts Office.

He's also been ordered to stay away from the local residents he stole from. 

Oliva was caught in the act on April 2 after a resident in the 200 block of Rose Lane Street SW spotted him stealing some of her property. She wrote down his license plate number, called police and officers responded to his residence shortly thefeafter, said North Canton Police Chief Stephan Wilder. 

Oliva swiped possessions from at least three houses in North Canton and one home in Plain Township, said Wilder. Officers collected the stolen goods, many of which were returned to their rightful owners. 

He was charged and pled guilty and no contest to theft, a first-degree misdemeanor and criminal trespassing, a fourth-degree misdemeanor.

Oliva will appear before Belden on June 17 for a restitution hearing to determine whether he needs to repay one or more of the victims.