Rockford man sentenced to prison for possessing stolen vehicle after violating condition of probation

OREGON – A Rockford man was sentenced to three years in the Illinois Department of Corrections after admitting that he violated the terms of a probation sentence he received in November by possessing a stolen vehicle.

Timothy P. Valdivia, 32, was sentenced Nov. 21 to 24 months of probation after pleading guilty to possessing a 2018 Toyota truck owned by a man from LaCrosse, Wisconsin, and violating an order of protection against an Oregon woman.

In those charges, Valdivia was apprehended in the truck Nov. 4 after an Oregon police officer was dispatched to 313 S. Second St. for a report of Valdivia violating an Oct. 11 order of protection for being within 300 feet of the home at that address.

As part of his probation, he was ordered to have no contact with the victim, submit to DNA testing, undergo any counseling ordered by the probation department, and pay $1,399 in fines and fees.

On Dec. 5 – only 16 days after being sentenced – Valdivia was charged with violating that order when, prosecutors said, he contacted the victim.

Valdivia, who has been held at the Ogle County Jail since his arrest in December, appeared in court Wednesday and told Ogle County Judge Anthony Peska that he again wanted to represent himself, plead guilty to the revocation charge and be resentenced for possessing the stolen vehicle.

At his November sentencing hearing, Valdivia told Judge John “Ben” Roe that he was certain he wanted to represent himself in court and had received a plea agreement from the Ogle County State’s Attorney’s Office.

On Wednesday, Assistant State’s Attorney Matthew Leisten said a plea agreement had been offered to Valdivia that would sentence him to three years in prison, with 51 days of credit for time already served in custody.

“Do you want to proceed with this?” Peska asked Valdivia, adding that he could refer the case back to Roe since he had presided over the November sentencing.

“I want to do [sentencing] today with you,” Valdivia said.

When asked by Peska if he was entering his guilty plea “freely and voluntarily,” Valdivia said, “Yes, sir.”

Under the agreement, Valdivia also will have one year of mandatory supervised release after his prison term is completed.

His original plea and sentence came 19 days after he led police on a chase through Oregon before fleeing from the truck and then returning to it, where he was arrested.

According to court documents, Valdivia was found inside the truck at 5:07 p.m. parked in front of the apartment building at the Second Street address.

Oregon patrol officer Terry Lester said he found Valdivia sitting in the driver’s seat of the truck with the engine running after the woman saw Valdivia sitting in the truck outside her residence. Lester said Valdivia told him he “wanted to see his daughter before he went to jail.”

Oregon Police Chief Matt Kalnins said Valdivia was the driver of a vehicle they chased through town Nov. 3 after it was seen traveling 66 mph in a 40-mph zone eastbound on East Washington Street, which also is Route 64. Those traffic charges were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.