A 39-year-old Torrance man accused of stealing more than $400,000 worth of computers while working for an Irvine-based multimedia production and staging company pleaded guilty Thursday to receiving stolen goods and was sentenced to 26 days in jail.
Ronnie Lee Terry Jr. pleaded guilty to one felony count of receiving stolen property. As part of his plea deal, 21 felony counts of grand theft were dismissed along with sentencing enhancements of aggravated white collar crime $100,000 to $500,000.
Terry was also placed on two years of formal probation.
Terry was hired by MBA Productions as an IT manager in October 2017, according to court papers filed by Irvine police Detective David Etlinger.
An internal audit in July 2018 showed that 25 computers were missing, including some machines sent to Terry’s residence, Etlinger said. Ultimately, the audit showed 27 computers and other equipment worth $421,913 was missing, he said.
During the audit, Terry “abruptly resigned” and ceased all communication with the company, Etlinger said.
Terry was named in a warrant out of the state of New York for alleged fraud that was issued on Sept. 25, 2016, according to Etlinger, who said the defendant has multiple prior convictions for grand larceny out of New York.
The defendant was allegedly selling the stolen computer equipment through an online sales site, Etlinger said.