Release Date: Tuesday, September 15, 2009 4 p.m.
Harvey L. Bryant, Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Virginia Beach, announced today that Virginia Lester Wheeler, 63 years old, previously residing in Vanceboro, North Carolina, was sentenced today by Circuit Court Judge A. Joseph Canada to 23 years in the Virginia Department of Corrections on convictions of Malicious Wounding and Use of a Firearm in the Commission of a Felony. The Court suspended 18 years of the sentence conditioned upon indefinite supervised probation, 20 years good behavior and payment of court costs. The Court also ordered the defendant to pay restitution in the amount of $135,000.00, for the victim’s medical treatment. The Sentencing Guidelines recommended incarceration with a sentence range of two years and six months up to six years and two months.
The Commonwealth’s evidence proved that on December 9, 2008, at approximately 8:00 in the morning, the victim, Michael David Troglin, pulled into his driveway on Dock Landing in the City of Virginia Beach. A light colored Ford Focus, occupied by a female driver and a male passenger, pulled up behind him, blocking him in his driveway. As the female driver sat in the driver’s seat of the vehicle the male passenger of the Ford Focus, armed with a long rifle, fired approximately eight shots at the victim striking him several times. The suspects then fled. A witness who observed the incident was able to obtain a partial license plate number.
Mr. Troglin was transported to Virginia Beach Hospital with several gunshot wounds. Virginia Beach Police Department Forensics responded, recovering several 22 caliber Super X ammunition shell casings at the scene.
The vehicle used during the shooting was located at a used car dealership belonging to Robert Wheeler, Virginia Wheeler’s son and brother-in-law of the victim, Michael Troglin. Robert Wheeler had loaned the car to his mother and her brother, Carl Lester, to use the vehicle while they were in town visiting. Both Virginia Wheeler and Carl Lester fled the Virginia Beach area immediately following the shooting. They were located 12 hours later by West Virginia State Police in Welch, West Virginia at the home of Carl Lester. A box of .22 caliber Super X long rifle ammunition was located inside Virginia Wheeler’s vehicle in West Virginia.
Michael Troglin suffered loss of vision in one of his eyes and reduced movement in one of his arms. He was able to identify Carl Lester as the male passenger who shot him. Virginia Wheeler later admitted she was the driver of the car at the time of the shooting. Carl Lester was sentenced by Circuit Court Judge William R. O’Brien on September 1, 2009. He was sentenced to 25 years in the Virginia Department of Corrections, with 15 years suspended conditioned upon indefinite supervised probation and 20 years of uniform good behavior.
Virginia Wheeler’s prior criminal history includes convictions in 1985 for misdemeanor Worthless Check in Norfolk General District Court and two counts of Commercial Fraud Against the Government and one count of Conspiracy to Defraud the United States in U.S. District Court in Norfolk.
Senior Commonwealth’s Attorney Charles D. Griffith, Jr. prosecuted the case. Please call Julie Pickell if additional information is desired.
Similar Press Releases: felony, Harvey Bryant, malicious wounding
