Jobless Avocado Thief Banned From Possession Of 10 Or More; Guacamole OK
SAN DIEGO (CBS) — An unemployed Southland man who admitted to stealing nearly a half-ton of avocados in northern San Diego County is a free man on Friday — but it comes at a very unusual price.
KNX 1070's Tom Reopelle reports Barron Stein of Fallbrook admitted he ripped off up to 1,000 pounds of avocados from nearby groves earlier this year.
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The unemployed 44-year-old truck driver said he was going to sell the fruit to help support his family when he entered a guilty plea on Sept. 21 in Vista Superior Court.
He was charged with grand theft of agricultural crops in connection with an incident in March at two separate local groves.
As part of his three-year probation sentence, Stein is banned from possessing more than 10 avocados at any time.
"Somebody can have guacamole, they can avocados on their sandwiches, but they cannot have a commercial quantity of avocados on their person," said agriculture crime prosecutor Liz Silva.
"It would be a violation of their probation," she added.
If caught with more than 10 avocados, Stein could face up to six months in jail.
