Woelfersheim pleads guilty to burglary and arson

Wednesday, March 26, 2014 - 17:52

Matthew Woelfersheim

GUILDERLAND — Matthew C. Woelfersheim, 37, pleaded guilty to burglary and arson in Albany County Court on March 21, before Judge Stephen Herrick, and faces time in state prison.
Woelfersheim, a resident of Siver Road, in Guilderland, unlawfully entered a business on West Street, in the city of Albany, between July 25, 2012, and Sept. 1, 2012, and stole over $1,000, according to a release from the Albany County District Attorney’s office.

He also entered a business on Watervliet Avenue in Albany, on Aug. 28, 2013 and Aug. 31, 2013, and stole money on both occasions, the release said.

Woelfersheim was arrested in Guilderland, in October, for three counts of felony arson, which stemmed from a vacant commercial building, a garage, and a barn being burned.

He was charged for and pleaded guilty to one of the arsons charges, from Sept. 30, 2013, during which he intentionally started a fire in an unoccupied building on Carman Road, which spread and caused further property damage to a neighbor’s garage and vehicle.

Woelfersheim will be sentenced to two to six years in state prison on each count of burglary, which will be served consecutively, for a total of 4 to 12 years in prison. He also faces a concurrent sentence of four to 12 years in state prison on the arson charge.

He will be sentenced on May 9, 2014.

Woelfersheim remains in custody at the Albany County jail, without bail, to await sentencing.

More Guilderland News

  • More senior housing approved for Carman Road

    The board at its March 4 meeting unanimously approved the project as well as a variance request from the town zoning code that would require the new structures to be set back 100 feet from the single-family lots on either side of the property. 

  • Guilderland ZBA OKs new shopping center with abundant parking

    The 90 parking spots approved for 1671 Western Ave. are nearly triple the number of spaces the town’s zoning code allows but resolve what had become a persistent operational problem for the popular restaurant The Scene.

  • Guilderland ZBA denies building in reservoir tributary setback

    The issue the applicant ran into was the town’s zoning code does not allow construction within the 250-foot setback to watercourses — in this case, the Bozenkill — feeding the Watervliet Reservoir. 

The Altamont Enterprise is focused on hyper-local, high-quality journalism. We produce free election guides, curate readers' opinion pieces, and engage with important local issues. Subscriptions open full access to our work and make it possible.