A Creston man arrested in mid-November on numerous charges was sentenced to 5-years in prison last week, on a forgery charge. The Lenox Police Department reported this week 24-year old Antonio Gutierres pled guilty February 7^th to one count of forgery. In a plea agreement with prosecutors, Gutierres’s prison sentence was subsequently suspended, and he was placed on supervised probation for a period of two-years. As part of the plea agreement, additional charges of Eluding a Pursuing Law Enforcement Vehicle and Possession of a False Identification Card, were dismissed. Gutierres was ordered to pay fines and court costs amounting to at least $450. He was also ordered to submit a DNA sample. Gutierres remained in custody on a hold for Federal Immigration authorities.

The events leading up to Gutierres’ arrest on November 18^th, 2011, began when Lenox Police were notified of a medical call at Village Park Apartments. While responding, the officer activated his emergency lights in an attempt to safely pass a car on County Road J-13. The car refused to yield to the police Vehicle. The ambulance arrived at the scene with adequate personnel. The officer then determined he should attempt to stop the vehicle he had attempted to pass, to learn why the driver failed to yield. The vehicle was pursued for over 2 miles before finally pulling over. When the driver was questioned, he presented the officer with a Nebraska ID card identifying him as Raul Pena. The officer determined the ID card was a forgery and the driver placed under arrest.

During a search of the suspect, another ID card was found that identified him as Antonio Gutierres. The felony charges were leveled against Gutierres after he was brought to the Taylor County Jail, and following an investigation into the false ID’s.