Austin resident pleads not guilty to stealing truck

Published 6:52 am Friday, January 8, 2010

An Austin man accused of stealing an idling truck, driving it into a snowbank, and then being chased down by the vehicle’s owner pleaded not guilty to several criminal charges Thursday.

Manolo Vicente-Morales, 23, pleaded not guilty to two counts of felony theft and a gross misdemeanor DWI charge. A trial date has not been set.

According to a criminal complaint, the incident occurred in front of the El-Parral Ballroom on Fourth Street Northeast, site of the old Terp Ballroom, on Dec. 27. A 27-year-old man was loading his truck around 2 a.m. after a musical performance when he noticed a man driving away with his vehicle.

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The musician and a friend followed the truck until it crashed into a snowbank in the 800 block of Sixth Street Northeast, in the area near Packer Arena. Vicente-Morales allegedly got out off the truck and began to run off, but the 27-year-old owner chased him down.

Police arrested Vicente-Morales, who had watery, bloodshot eyes and smelled strongly of alcohol.