A man accused of stealing 6,000 gallons of fuel from Pilot Flying J gas station was sentenced to four months in jail on Thursday and will be detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement after his sentence is served, according to Routt County Judge Erin Wilson.

Onsel Perez Palacio, 29, was arrested Dec. 5 with another man, David Caboverde, and was charged with theft, third-degree burglary, conspiracy to commit and other traffic-related misdemeanors.

According to the arrest affidavit, Steamboat Springs Police Det. Christian Barnett observed a box truck that began fueling at 6:39 p.m. and departed the gas station at 7:47 p.m. on the night of Dec. 5.

After the truck left the gas station, a detective initiated a traffic stop on Shield Drive, near the intersection of Elk River Road. The driver, Perez Palacio, provided a driver’s license that did not confirm his identity, states the affidavit. 

According to the affidavit, Perez Palacio claimed he was not the owner of the vehicle and that he was borrowing it from a friend. He also claimed he was driving from Aurora to the friend’s property but could not say where that was.

When asked why the truck took an hour to fuel, Perez Palacio stated that he was paying with gift cards and it took 45 minutes for the cards to activate, according to the affidavit.

Perez Palacio has remained in custody at the Routt County Jail since his arrest. He was previously scheduled for a preliminary hearing Feb. 10, which would have determined whether there is enough probable cause to set the case for a trial.

Before the hearing, Perez Palacio’s attorney, Public Defender Chris Hamsher, submitted a plea agreement to the court and stated there would be no preliminary hearing if the plea paperwork was approved.

Despite both the prosecution’s and defense’s preparations to reach a plea agreement, Perez Palacio decided he wanted to go through with a preliminary hearing rather than plead guilty.

The preliminary hearing was then rescheduled for Thursday, and a new, slightly modified plea agreement was submitted to the court. Perez Palacio then pled guilty to an amended charge of theft as a class one misdemeanor.

The modified plea agreement decreased the total jail time from six months to four months and lowered the restitution costs from $7,356 to $6,556.

According to Wilson, Perez Palacio has served 85 days of the 120-day sentence, leaving only 35 days remaining. 

Wilson also added that ICE has placed a detainer on Perez Palacio, and he will be arrested by the federal authorities as soon as he is released from Routt County Jail.

Caboverde, the man arrested with Perez Palacio in early December, is scheduled to appear in court for a plea hearing at 3 p.m. Tuesday.