Police track thief by his GPS monitoring device; prosecutor gives him plea deal
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Noah Riggs took a plea deal Thursday from the Marion County prosecutor’s office.
One of the victims of Riggs’ crimes had 20 firearms, jewelry and guitars stolen from his house. That victim told the court that the plea deal was letting Riggs off too easy.
“I think the way the judicial system may be set up now is flawed,” said Michael Williams, one of Riggs victims.
Riggs’ plea deal will send him to jail for a decade. He was in no mood to answer any of my questions as he headed back the Marion County jail.
Williams had to come to court to hear the plea deal. He says he lost close to $40,000 worth of guns, jewelry and guitars taken from his house and he was hoping the judge would throw the book at Riggs.
“They got 20 guns out of my safe. I had three ARs, two of my grandfather’s guns, and I had some handguns. I had some 22s. I had a suppressor, which is a Class 3 weapon; it has to be registered. I had to be fingerprinted with the federal government,” Williams said.
Two of his guns have been recovered; however, one of them equipped with suppressor, or what some people would call a silencer, is still in the wind. Stealing a gun with suppressor could bring federal charges.
“They are still not addressing the suppressor, a Class 3 violation that carries a big penalty, but nobody wants to talk about it. Nobody wants to mention it,” Williams said.
Williams says he is concerned the guns will end up in the wrong hands.
A Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokesperson told News 8 that federal charges are likely for the person who is caught with Williams suppressor.
Riggs has been in and out the court system for years. He was wearing a court-ordered GPS monitoring device when he and at least two other people robbed and trashed Williams’ house in November. The court hearing Thursday revealed that police tied Riggs to several other burglaries in the same area using data from his GPS monitoring system. Also, Riggs’ DNA matched DNA taken from a COVID-19 mask left at Williams’ house.
“He told me it was that rush of kicking open doors,” said Riggs ex-girlfriend Crystal Hilderbrand, who told News 8 that Riggs came and went from her house and no one from the court’s program for GPS monitoring systems ever checked on him.
“And that is another thing I don’t understand. Why didn’t they check him, trace him? How did they not know when he was gone? That makes no sense to me,” Hilderbrand said.
RIggs is scheduled to be sentenced in July; the judge could send him to prison 10 years.