Trial delayed for IC man accused of spring crime spree

Hunter/Lang
7/27/19

Trial has been delayed for an Iowa City man facing a host of charges stemming from a series of alleged spring crimes that got more serious with each incident.

34-year-old Michael Cintron-Caceres began the spree on April 21^st, where he’s seen on surveillance video taking cases of Bud Light and Coors Light from the Waterfront Hy-Vee without paying for them. He wasn’t spotted again until May 4^th, when he was sitting in the passenger seat of a vehicle on Davis Street. He’s accused of fleeing in the vehicle before getting out and running. He was located in a garage on Hollywood Boulevard a short time later.

By that date, Cintron-Caceres had allegedly committed two other crimes.

On April 30^th, he’s accused of threatening a cashier at Romantix and forcing the register open, getting away with $100 cash.

The next day, Cintron-Caceres allegedly wrote a $150 check on a checkbook that wasn’t his, forging the owner’s name and cashing it.

On May 7^th, Cintron Caceres is accused of forcing a cash register open at the Suburban BP Amoco on Keokuk Street, taking about $280 from that location.

Then on May 9^th, at approximately 2:30am, Cintron-Caceres fled from ICPD officers who were investigating two burglaries at Pizza Hut on Keokuk Street and The Second Act on Olympic Court. Cintron-Caceres jumped two fences to enter a secured lot of Big Ten Rentals on Boyrum Street, where he hid in a truck. When found, Cintron-Caceres started the truck and used it to smash into vehicles and equipment in the lot. ICPD officers’ verbal commands, deployment of the police canine and shooting a Taser were ineffective in getting Cintron-Caceres to stop. An ICPD officer fired his weapon at Cintron-Caceres, but he continued to ram the truck. Only after a second officer shot at Cintron-Caceres did Cintron-Caceres halt his action. Two of the officers’ bullets struck Cintron-Caceres, hitting his right and left shoulders.

The two officers, Alex Stricker and Travis Neeld, have since been cleared of any wrongdoing in the shooting.

Cintron-Caceres has a Case Management Conference scheduled for September 23^rd for the May 4^th incident; for the more serious charges, trial was set for September 24^th but has been delayed until November 12^th. Case management conferences on the charges is scheduled for September 24^th. He faces a prison sentence of over sixty years if convicted on all charges.