A Boulder man accused of hitting another man on the head with a wooden stick to get his bicycle back last year has taken a plea deal and was sentenced to probation.
Mathew Hochstedler, who also goes by Matthew, pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree assault in April, and was sentenced to 36 months of probation at a hearing on Sept. 27.
Prosecutors dismissed the original charges of first- and second-degree assault causing serious bodily injury as a condition of the plea deal.
According a probable cause affidavit, Hochstedler was standing outside a hotel in the 2700 block of Canyon Boulevard on Aug. 5, 2018, when a man he didn’t know, later identified as Brice Fox, began to argue with him.
Fox then took Hochstedler’s silver bike and rode away with it, according to the affidavit. Hochstedler went into the hotel to get his girlfriend’s bike and then chased after Fox.
Hochstedler caught up with Fox near a restaurant in the 1900 block of 29th Street. According to the affidavit, Hochstedler then dismounted and hit Fox with a piece of wood he had picked up near the hotel.
Hochstedler told Boulder police he struck Fox because he wanted to get Fox off the bike. Fox fell down following the hit and Hochstedler took the bike back.
Police later found a large wooden stick near the scene of the incident. The stick was about 4 feet long and 3 inches wide, but was broken in half.
Fox was taken to Boulder Community Hospital for his injuries. Physicians later confirmed that he suffered “serious bodily injury,” including a fractured nasal cavity and a laceration on his head.
Police also noted the bike Hochstedler said Fox stole from his was actually reported stolen by someone else three days earlier.
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