The Washoe County District Attorney’s Office has announced that a California man with a long criminal history has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for vehicle burglary and theft charges. The defendant was linked to multiple car theft cases throughout the area and was apprehended after burglarizing a car in South Reno.  The sentence ensures that a minimum of 8 years must be served before parole eligibility begins.

Ryan Daniel Sikes, 35, from Pacheco, California was sentenced last week on one count of Burglary and one count of Grand Larceny of a Motor Vehicle to 20 years in prison which is the maximum for the crimes he committed. Sikes had previously pled guilty in March to the charges and was sentenced in Washoe County District Court by Judge Scott Freeman.  Sikes had 9 prior felony convictions. 

Sikes was arrested last December by the Reno Police Department (RPD) after an investigation linked him and a female co-defendant to a vehicle burglary that occurred in the parking lot of a local Wal-Mart. RPD Detectives determined that Sikes and his female companion, Katie Elizabeth Johnson, 34, also from Pacheco, had burglarized a car parked in the lot and stolen several items including an ATM card and Christmas gifts and a stroller belonging to special needs twins. Detectives also linked the pair to thefts of several Ford trucks stolen from throughout Reno during the same month. Sikes and Johnson were ultimately identified and arrested with the assistance of the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office and the University of Nevada-Reno Police Department. Johnson pled guilty in March to one count of Receiving a Stolen Credit Card and will be sentenced on May 31, 2017.