Darius Sheplar

A Homestead man, charged in an alleged burglary ring, withdrew his guilty plea in Butler County Court on Friday.

Darius Sheplar, 39, was permitted to withdraw his guilty plea by county Judge William Shaffer, but was denied a request to replace his attorney.

Sheplar first attempted to have attorney J.W. Hernandez-Cuebas removed as his representation, arguing that Hernandez-Cuebas was not acting in his best interest.

“I feel that he was not representing me the right way,” he said.

He said that Hernandez-Cuebas didn't provide him with all the discovery in his case — including victim statements — so he wasn't prepared to fight all the charges against him, never met with him again after the guilty plea and had previously expressed on March 15 that he didn't want to take the guilty plea in the first place.

Sheplar was initially charged with 142 counts — felonies and misdemeanors. All counts were waived to county court before a scheduled preliminary hearing, and many of the charges were later withdrawn. Sheplar was proceeding to trial on 53 counts, including burglary, theft, receiving stolen property and criminal mischief.

When asked by Mark Serge, prosecutor for the Attorney General's Office, if he was telling the court he was innocent of the charges, Sheplar said he was, before saying he was not sure which burglaries he had pleaded to.

“He never explained that to me,” Sheplar said, indicating Hernandez-Cuebas.