EVANSTON — One of the men involved in two laundromat burglaries last year has been sentenced, and he will spend significant time behind bars after the judge spoke extensively about the need to deter these types of crimes.

Evanston has suffered several break-ins over the past few months, ranging from suspects breaking windows and escaping with nothing, to breaking into a church on  Bear River Drive and making off with a stash of firearms.

Christopher Harter of Lyman was found guilty of aiding and abetting Christopher Burkett in the commission of burglaries of Joe’s Modern Cleaners in Evanston in October 2016, and Main Street Laundry in Lyman two days later, according to Uinta County Attorney Loretta Howieson.

Howieson said Burkett is currently in custody in Nevada and he’ll face theft and burglary charges when he’s returned to Wyoming.

“The Court spoke extensively about the need for general and specific deterrence for these crimes which relates to sentencing factors to ‘send a message’ or ‘warn’ the public as to how serious the court will address a situation and also for the defendant (Harter) himself to be deterred from future conduct,” Howieson said in an email to the Herald. “He (3rd District Court Judge Joseph Bluemel) also addressed issues of punishment and rehabilitation.”

The court also addressed restitution and awarded the state’s request for litigation costs.

The most important details, Howieson said, had to do with how long Harter will be incarcerated.

Harter was sentenced to 18 to 36 months for aiding and abetting burglary and 180 days for receiving stolen property.  Those two sentences will run concurrently.

On the second count of aiding and abetting burglary, Harter received an even tougher sentence — two to four years in prison. Howieson said the second count was dealt with more strictly because there were two days between the crimes and Harter had plenty of time to back out of the second burglary.

“… The increased time reflected the repetitive behavior with ample opportunity to rescind his work with Burkett.”

Harter received another 180 days for the second count of receiving stolen property, to run concurrently with the second aiding and abetting conviction.

The part about “sending a message” pertains to Judge Bluemel ordering the two aiding and abetting sentences to run consecutively, one after an other (rather than a more common sentence of sentences to be served concurrently).

“There are some rather complicated calculations by the [Wyoming Department of Corrections],” Howieson said, “but this will result in a much longer term of incarceration for Mr. Harter and reflects that these were two separate events and crimes.”

Coin machines were stolen from Joe’s Modern Cleaners in Evanston on Oct. 7, 2016. Two days later, a coin machine was stolen from Main Street Laundry in Lyman. Main Street Laundry owner said at the time that the coin machine had $800 in it, but it cost $2,000 to replace the machine.

Howieson said Harter helped plan the crimes, drove Burkett to both scenes and helped him dispose of the coin machines.