Man, 44, sentenced for stealing rent payments in Michigan
(CBS DETROIT) — A 44-year-old man will spend at least six years in prison for stealing money orders and cash out of drop boxes at apartments and mobile homes in Michigan.
On Friday, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Rafael Rodriguez, of Florida, will spend between six and 20 years incarcerated.
From 2019 to 2022, Rodriguez and another Florida man, Juan Miguel Rodriguez-Venegas, stole rent payments in Bay, Midland, Oakland and Saginaw counties.
In March, the Department of the Attorney General and the Midland County Prosecutor's Office filed joint charges against both men.
Rodriguez and Rodriguez-Venegas pled guilty to one count of conducting a criminal enterprise in August. In September, Rodriguez-Venegas, 56, was sentenced to serve between two and 20 years in prison.
State officials say Rodriguez was ordered to pay over $27,284 in restitution and Rodriguez-Venegas was ordered to pay $36,235.
"Michiganders work hard and deserve better than having their rent payments fished out of drop boxes and stolen by criminals," Nessel said in a written statement released by the Department of the Attorney General Friday.