Guitar thefts send ex-Wheaton College janitor to prison

A former maintenance man at Wheaton College's Billy Graham Center was sentenced Friday to three years in prison for stealing three vintage guitars.

Timothy G. Cavalieri, 41, of Elburn must serve half the prison term for the felony theft before being eligible for parole. He also was ordered to pay nearly $1,560 in restitution to the guitars' owner.

Nearly two dozen supporters filled DuPage Associate Judge Mark Dwyer's courtroom gallery seeking leniency. Many testified Cavalieri is a good man who volunteers at the Lord of Light Church in LaFox.

A DuPage County jury deliberated for less than an hour last month before convicting Cavalieri of stealing a 1983 Fender Stratocaster Elite, a Charvel Surfcaster and an Ibanez AR in March 2007 from a locked storage room. Two of the guitars were sold on the Internet. Only the Fender was recovered.

"He was motivated by greed and self-interest," argued prosecutor Mary K. Cronin in seeking a prison term. "He saw something he wanted, and he took it. This wasn't finders keepers, losers weepers. This was a felony crime."

Cavalieri faced up to 10 years in prison. Dwyer declined to impose a maximum sentence, but he cited the defendant's criminal past as reason against probation. This was Cavalieri's fourth felony. He went to prison twice before and was on probation when the guitars went missing.

Cavalieri testified during his trial that he thought the guitars had been abandoned. He said the college had an unwritten policy that employees may take unclaimed items.

His attorney, Joan Pantsios, a senior assistant public defender, sought leniency. She cited his volunteerism with his church and community. His ex-wife also testified that he supports his sons, ages 9 and 7, both financially and emotionally.

The owner of the guitars, Bruce Knowlton, a college department manager, reported them missing and later found an eBay auction listing of his Fender with a low bid of $2,800. He also discovered his two other guitars were sold for more than $1,500.

Cavalieri declined to make a public statement before being sentenced.