Zachary Olston
HANCOCK COUNTY — A man accused of auto theft and arson was given a seven-year sentence for crimes committed in Greenfield several years ago. His case was closed following the acceptance of a plea agreement by Judge Scott Sirk in Hancock County Circuit Court late last week.
Zachary Lee Olston, 34, New Castle, was handed a seven-year term on Thursday. Five of those years are to be executed in the Indiana Department of Corrections while two years were suspended to formal probation.
Olston was charged with a Level 4 felony count of arson and a Level 6 felony count of auto theft. The charges stem from a garage fire in the 500 block of Riley Avenue in Greenfield on the evening of Nov. 9, 2020, and a report of a stolen vehicle the following day.
Olston was given the seven-year term for the Level 4 felony crime and a two-year term for the Level 6 felony crime with 607 days credit. The lesser term will run concurrent with the Level 4 count, court records state.
Records also show the court will not entertain or consider any motion for modification of sentence until Olston has completed Recovery While Incarcerated and served a minimum of three years. Olston is also not allowed to have contact with the victims and agrees to pay $1,000 restitution.
A probable cause affidavit states Olston had been allowed to stay in the garage where the fire occurred for a short time several months prior, but not at that time.
Olston’s mother and sister visited the garage, worried about Olston’s condition and drug abuse, according to the affidavit. They and the boyfriend of the property’s resident tried to get Olston to come out of the garage, the report stated. Olston’s mother then told officials she smelled smoke, the affidavit stated and eventually Olston opened the garage’s service door. The mother pulled Olston out and saw a flame in the garage before Olston fled the scene.
The following day, the resident’s boyfriend reported his vehicle was stolen while he was inside his girlfriend’s residence. Later that day, the car was located in Charlottesville, where Olston was visiting his cousin, the report stated. The boyfriend went to Charlottesville to confront Olston, and law enforcement soon joined the two.
Greenfield Fire Territory and insurance investigations into the fire reported the blaze was intentionally set, according to the affidavit.
