Former Rutland man takes plea deal in connection with the theft of Vermont State Police cruiser

RUTLAND — A former Rutland man accused of stealing a Vermont State Police vehicle has reached a plea agreement to dismiss at least one of the charges against him stemming from the theft.

Timothy Gabriel, 30, pleaded guilty last week in Rutland County Superior Criminal Court to a felony charge of aggravated driving without the owner’s consent.

The charge was theft Vermont State Police Cpl. Christopher Loiselle’s fully marked 2021 Ford SUV was taken from Loiselle’s home in Rutland on Oct. 17, 2023, according to charging documents.

He was sentenced as part of a plea deal with Rutland County State’s Attorney Ian Sullivan to one to five years in prison.

Gabriel is also currently awaiting sentencing on a federal charge after pleading guilty to a count of possession of a firearm as a convicted felon in connection with the theft of a rifle from inside a cruiser.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March, according to court records.

Gabriel was arrested in Burlington a day after the cruiser was stolen in Rutland.

The cruiser was discovered later in the morning of the theft near a business in central Rutland. However, the patrol rifle that was in the car was missing. The firearm was found two days after the cruiser was stolen off the Route 7 off-ramp in Arlington, according to court records.

Adam Silverman, a state police spokesman, said in an email Tuesday in response to questions about the stolen cruiser that there was a key inside the vehicle, but the vehicle was properly locked from the outside.

“An investigation later determined that one of the rear doors had a faulty locking mechanism allowing it to be opened from the outside,” Silverman wrote. “The patrol rifle was securely secured to the rack and the offender destroyed the rack to force the rifle out.”

Gabrielle has multiple felony convictions, including assault and robbery convictions in January 2020. Court records state he also had a previous conviction for grand theft.