Lake Charles woman sentenced to 12 months in prison for purchasing stolen equipment

LAFAYETTE, La. – Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced that a Lake Charles woman was sentenced Thursday to a year and a day in prison for buying stolen equipment from Texas.

Katherine P. LaRocca, 53, of Lake Charles, La., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on three counts of sale and receipt of a stolen vehicle. The court also sentenced her to two years of supervised release and ordered her to pay a $20,000 fine. According to the January 25, 2017 guilty plea, two men stole three pieces of equipment in Texas between December 2010 and October 2011. They transported the equipment to LaRocca in Calcasieu Parish, and she bought them knowing they were stolen. The stolen equipment was a John Deer mower, a CASE Skidster front-end loader and a Kubota KX 61 Mini-Excavator with a value of between $95,000 and $150,000.

The Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly P. Uebinger prosecuted the case.