NORTH TROY — A North Troy man faces a felony stolen-property charge after a mechanic in Jay alerted police that someone was trying to sell tools that had just been reported stolen from a Westfield garage, according to a state police affidavit.
Darin D. Farley, 38, pleaded not guilty to a charge of buying, receiving, selling, possessing or concealing stolen property. Judge Thibault released him on conditions.
The case began May 20, when a Westfield resident called troopers to report that his garage door was open and that a Polaris 570 six-wheeled ATV outfitted with tracks was gone, Trooper Kali Lindor wrote in the affidavit. Also missing, she said, were a chainsaw, an electric chainsaw, five drills, a grease gun, a set of wrenches and several chargers.
About the same time that morning, the affidavit says, a Jay mechanic phoned police to report that Farley had come in trying to sell five or six drills, a chainsaw and other tools. The mechanic contacted the Westfield man, who confirmed the items matched what had been taken, according to Lindor. The mechanic also gave troopers a description of Farley’s truck and its license plate, the affidavit says.
Troopers Jeff Ferrier, Jesse Nash and David Hastings searched for Farley that day but did not find him, according to the document.
Two days later, Lindor learned that Sgt. Abigail Drew had already stopped Farley while he was driving the truck the mechanic described, the affidavit says. Drew and Trooper Logan Miller then visited the Lowell home of the truck’s registered owner, where they reported seeing tire-track marks consistent with the missing ATV.
Also on May 22, Lt. Richard Wells of the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department told Lindor he had recovered one of the stolen chainsaws and returned it to its owner after the buyer turned it over, the affidavit says.
Ferrier and Nash later met with Farley at the probation and parole office, the document says. Farley initially declined to talk without a lawyer but agreed to speak with troopers at the state police barracks in Derby.
According to Lindor, Farley said he suspected the people he had been staying with may have stolen the ATV and tools, and he told troopers the ATV was hidden under a tarp in nearby woods. He said one of his hosts had asked him to sell the tools to help cover funeral costs for her mother, the affidavit says.
Farley also said he approached an acquaintance about buying the tools, but the man declined, suspecting they were stolen.
