Women get 4 years for burglaries, drug sales

Two women who admitted burglarizing several homes on Carson City’s west side and selling heroin to undercover officers have been sentenced to up to four years in prison.

Judge James Todd Russell ordered the sentences this week for Malia Wong, 27, and Tara Lyn Stowbunenko, 28, as part of a plea bargain they entered in April.

Each was sentenced to one to three years in prison on the drug charge and 19 months to four years on the burglary charge. Russell ordered that the sentences run concurrently, meaning the maximum amount of time either would spend in prison is four years.

The two were arrested this year on charges they sold heroin to Tri-Net undercover officers. When uniformed officers went to arrest them at a hotel, they asked about a number of items on the bed. According to Sheriff Ken Furlong, one of the women said they were stolen from a house they burglarized,

“The Tri-Net guys realized this may be a criminal case beyond narcotics,” he said.

The two pleaded guilty April 14, telling Carson District Judge James Wilson they burglarized four houses on Carson’s west side in January and sold heroin to undercover agents. In return, other charges were dropped. The two had faced a total of seven charges.

They were also ordered to pay restitution totaling $4,980.50

Furlong said after the two pleaded guilty that they had been knocking on doors in the neighborhood near the Governor’s Mansion asking for directions. He said people should beware of some one knocking on the door without a legitimate reason. He said solicitors who don’t have a license should be reported to the sheriff’s department.

The case was prosecuted by Douglas County District Attorney’s office because some of the burglary victims are employees in the Carson City DA’s office, creating a conflict.

In addition, Wilson this week sentenced Janna Hinsen, 45, to up to four years in prison for transporting methamphetamine. The judge cited the quantity of the drug found on Hinsen’s person — nearly five grams.

Finally, Wilson this week sentenced Barbara Larson, 56, to up to six years in prison for embezzlement. She admitted using her position as office manager at a Carson business to issue checks to herself over the course of a year until she was discovered. The total taken from the business was $246,800.

When the sentence was announced, her son, Corey Larson, was ordered held in contempt of court for shouting an expletive as he left the courtroom, slamming the door in the process. Wilson ordered him to spend 10 days in jail.