By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews

Michael Nathan Cushing

WARSAW — An Elkhart man will serve three years in prison after burglarizing a local cigarette shop.

Michael Nathan Cushing, 30, 25176 Rex St., Elkhart, was charged with burglary, a level 5 felony; theft, a level 6 felony; and criminal mischief, a class A misdemeanor. Two additional criminal charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

Cushing was sentenced in Kosciusko Superior Court Three on Monday, March 29.

On Jan. 23, 2020, Warsaw Police officers responded to a reported burglary at Cigarettes Plus, now known as C’s Smoke Shop.

Upon arrival, police noticed the glass door to the front entry was shattered. A hammer was also found on the floor just inside the entrance.

A review of the store’s security video showed a man, later identified as Cushing, enter the business wearing a ski mask. Cushing carried a trash bag that he used to gather cartons of cigarettes and other items from the business. According to court documents, video surveillance showed Cushing opening the cash register. While opening the register, his face covering came down, revealing his face. At that time, Cushing looked up at the security camera.

Cushing then abruptly left the business with the trash bag and its contents. Damage to the business totaled $775.03, with the property stolen estimated at $1,383.81.

On June 22, 2020, an Indiana State Trooper was contacted by C’s Smoke Shop’s owner about a broken window at the business. The owner said on June 11, 2020, a suspect, later identified as Cushing, used what appeared to be bolt cutters to break the glass on the front doors and windows.

After breaking the windows, Cushing left in a vehicle. The business owner provided the state trooper with footage from the store’s surveillance camera.

Video footage showed that early in the morning on June 11, 2020, a vehicle arrived in the business’s parking lot and circled it, as if casing the surroundings. Cushing is shown exiting the vehicle while wearing a dark-colored bandana that covered his mouth. He approached the store and pulled a pair of bolt cutters from under his sweatshirt. Cushing then began to break the glass on the door.

After shattering the glass, Cushing ran back to his vehicle and drove away. It was later discovered the registered owner of the vehicle was with Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

The trooper went to Enterprise Rent-A-Car in Warsaw and found the vehicle had been rented to a woman. Records showed the vehicle was rented on May 28 and returned June 12.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car staff were contacted by a detective from the Elkhart Police Department and learned the vehicle was found. The person driving the vehicle at the time was Cushing, who had been arrested in Elkhart for a gas station robbery.

The trooper contacted Elkhart Police and learned Cushing was involved in several crimes in the Elkhart and Osceola areas. While committing a burglary on June 12, 2020, at an Elkhart gas station, Cushing wore clothing similar to what the suspect in the June 11, 2020, cigarette shop burglary wore.

A search warrant was served at the property where Cushing was living. The same clothing shown in the business’s surveillance video, as well as cigarettes and lottery tickets, were found at his property.

Investigators were able to identify Cushing as the individual who broke into Cigarettes Plus on Jan. 23, 2020, from the surveillance video showing Cushing’s face.

Cushing is currently serving a six-year burglary sentence at the Westville Correctional Facility, with a projected release date of Dec. 10, 2024.

During court proceedings, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Brad Voelz noted Cushing’s criminal history, saying it was significant enough to merit a maximum sentence.

Defense Attorney Edward Ruiz said Cushing’s actions were “one big linear strain of events.”

“This is a typical case where someone commits crimes to support a drug habit,” said Ruiz. “This was one bad night.”

Cushing connected his actions to using drugs as a coping mechanism for personal matters.

“I made those decisions and I am sorry about that,” said Cushing. “I was trying to support my drug habit but I have accepted responsibility because I didn’t want to waste the state’s time.”

Cushing said he has relatives who have offered him residency upon his release from incarceration so long as he does not use drugs.

For burglary, Kosciusko Superior Court Three Judge Chad Miner sentenced Cushing to four years in the Indiana Department of Corrections. Three years of the sentence will be executed and one year was suspended on probation.

Cushing also received a one-year suspended sentence for theft; he received the same sentence for criminal mischief. All three counts will be served consecutively; the counts will also be served to two burglary cases in Elkhart County.

In total, Cushing was sentenced to three years in prison and three years on probation. As a condition of his probation, Cushing must pay $1,581.90 in restitution to C’s Smoke Shop.