NASHUA – A former Nashua man who pleaded guilty in February to three felony and three misdemeanor charges was sentenced this week to nearly two years in prison.

Devonta Soto, 22, formerly of 7 Forge Drive, will need to “think long and hard about what you do when you get out” of prison, Judge Jacalyn Colburn told him during his sentencing hearing in Hillsborough County Superior Court South.

“It sounds from all accounts that you’re a capable guy … and I think you should be afforded the opportunity to better yourself,” Colburn said after handing down the sentence.

In February, Colburn accepted Soto’s guilty pleas to one count each of possession of a dangerous weapon, falsifying physical evidence and receiving stolen property, all felonies, as well as three misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest.

This week, she imposed two 2 1/2-5 year state prison terms, to run concurrently, on the weapons possession and receiving stolen property charges, and one 3 1/2-7 year prison term, all suspended for five years, on the falsifying evidence charge.

She also sentenced Soto to 12 months in the Valley Street jail on the three misdemeanor charges, also to run concurrently with the prison sentence.

Public defender Steve Rosecan, who represented Soto, said his client wants to “put the issues he’s struggled with behind him” and “go forward with his life.”

Assistant County Attorney Lisa Drescher, who prosecuted the case, said her sentence recommendation – the same as Colburn imposed – takes into consideration Soto’s young age and “balances his record with the nature of the crimes.”

She noted that Soto’s criminal record includes several earlier felony charges stemming from his arrest in 2013. He has also been charged twice with violating his probation, which was
terminated as part of the agreement.

Colburn, while noting that Soto “has a pretty significant record for a 22-year-old man,” encouraged him to make good use of programs and treatment offered at the State Prison.

“You’re going to have a lot of choices … of who you hang out with and who you don’t hang out with” in prison, Colburn said.

She told Soto that making the wrong choices going forward could lead to his suspended sentences being imposed, in which case “you’d be living at P.O. Box 14 for the foreseeable future,” she said, a reference to the mailing address for the state prison in Concord.

Soto was credited with 230 days of time already served, which brings his minimum sentence to just over 22 months.

Dean Shalhoup can be reached at 594-6443, dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com or @Telegraph_DeanS.