GALLIPOLIS — A Gallipolis man charged in relation to a recent string of Gallia County burglaries recently entered a guilty plea to eight counts of burglary and one count of breaking and entering in the Common Pleas Court of Gallia County.

Donald C. Wray, 34, initially pleaded not guilty in September to an 18-count indictment charging him with eight counts of burglary, nine counts of theft and one count of breaking and entering.

Wray was indicted, along with Keith A. Skidmore, 20, and Matthew J. Gilbert, 24, both of Bidwell, for the burglary of seven homes this April, the theft of multiple firearms and other items, as well as the illegal entry into an outbuilding.

According to the indictment, returned by a grand jury and filed with the Gallia County Clerk of Courts on June 27, Wray, along with the co-defendants, allegedly burglarized a Gallia County residence on April 17 of this year and stole a 20 gauge New England Pardner shotgun, a .22 caliber Winchester Model 67A rifle, a Stevens .22 caliber auto rifle, as well as Percocets, a schedule II controlled substance, from the residence.

The indictment further alleges that the defendant entered a residence on Williams Hollow Road between April 13-15 and stole a 12 gauge Remington pump shotgun, a 16 gauge bolt action shotgun, a 410 gauge single shot shotgun and a .22 caliber rifle with scope.

A residence located on Cargo Road was also burglarized on April 5, and miscellaneous jewelry was taken from that residence, according to the charges.

Additionally, the indictment states that a residence on Bulaville Pike was broken into between November 7 and November 26, 2009, and was allegedly burglarized again by the defendant on April 19-21 of this year.

The indictment also specifies a burglary on Yellow Town Road on April 4, as well as a break-ins at residences located on Ohio 160 and Kerr Road and a barn located on Cora Mill Road.

On December 11, Wray appeared before Judge D. Dean Evans and pleaded guilty to all eight counts of burglary as specified in his indictment, as well as the breaking and entering charge.

The nine counts of theft were dismissed by the state in accordance with the plea agreement.

A pre-sentence investigation in this case was ordered to be conducted by the Adult Probation Department and the case was continued to December 20 for sentencing.

The defendant was further advised that he could released on electronic-monitored house arrest pending his payment for the same at $10 per day for eight days.

A journal entry recently filed in the case against Skidmore schedules a plea and sentencing hearing on December 21 in the common pleas court.

A jury trial in the case against Gilbert has been scheduled for January 29, 2013. A plea agreement in this case can be filed with the clerk of courts by January 11, 2013.