The Rio Nido man whose idea of recycling metal was to steal sprinkler heads from local vineyards has been tried and sentenced. Thomas Barnick, 48, was convicted of grand theft stemming from a series of thefts in the Sonoma, Russian River and Geyserville areas.
Barnick came to the attention of the Sheriff’s Office as the suspect in the series of sprinkler head thefts that began about a year ago. The units are made of brass and valued at $8 to $20 each. Most thefts involved several hundred sprinkler heads.
Barnick was identified when he pulled up in a pickup truck to a vineyard where buckets of sprinklers had been left after being stripped at night. His license plate number was noted, and he was later identified him in a photo lineup.
Placed under surveillance by Sheriff detectives, he was caught in the act near Healdsburg.
Barnick will serve a three-year prison sentence under the new “realignment” sentencing rules in which non-violent offenders serve their prison sentence in the county jail. He will serve 16 actual months in jail, followed by a nine-month residential treatment program.
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