A 53-year old Cassopolis man faces the potential of life in prison as a habitual offender after a Cass County jury found him guilty of receiving and concealing a 1996 Ram Pickup truck early in 2018 which had been stolen from an Elkhart auto dealer.
Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz tells us that Kevin Maxam was convicted after the jury heard testimony that the plow truck he was in possession of on January 15th, 2018 had been stolen from Image Motors in Elkhart, Indiana. An employee of the dealership had apparently been successful in tracking the stolen vehicle by GPS directly to Maxam’s home in Cassopolis.
Maxam was found with the truck that same day, and testimony shows that officers noted that the Dodge Ram had been partially spray-painted a different color, had a broken window, a new ignition, and an improper license plate. Maxam admitted to investigating officers that he had affixed the bad plate to the pickup.
Cassopolis Patrol Officer Thorn Lewis explained from the stand that Maxam claimed he had the truck so he could fix the headlights—but he could only give a first name of the woman who he claims gave him the truck. He also could not provide her phone number, address, or any other identifying information.
The jury deliberated approximately 4 hours today before returning guilty verdicts on a felony charge of receiving and concealing a stolen motor vehicle and a misdemeanor charge of unlawful use of a license plate. Maxam, however, was found not guilty of a felony count of unlawful driving away of a motor vehicle.
At the time the offense occurred Maxam was already on probation for a 2015 methamphetamine possession conviction. This week’s trial began yesterday morning and concluded with the verdict at 10 am today.
Maxam was jailed immediately following the verdict and Prosecutor Fitz says that as a result of his actions, Maxam now faces up to life in prison as a habitual offender with three or more prior felony convictions. He is scheduled for sentencing in front of Cass County Circuit Judge Mark Herman on September 27, 2019 at 8:30 am.
The photo accompanying this story on Moody on the Market is for illustrative purposes only.
