HOULTON – A Houlton man who accrued a number of charges stemming from an incident involving the Houlton Wesleyan Church pleaded guilty Thursday in Aroostook County Superior Court in Houlton.

Shane Lee, 27, was indicted by an Aroostook County grand jury in March 2006 on two counts of burglary and one count each of theft and unlawful possession of scheduled drugs.

One count of burglary was dismissed, and Lee answered to the remaining charges during a brief hearing on Thursday before Superior Court Justice E. Allen Hunter.

Lee was charged with the crimes on Jan. 24, 2006, according to Aroostook County Assistant District Attorney Suzanne Russell.

On that day, a witness inside the Houlton Wesleyan Church on High Street was working when he heard footsteps in the building. The witness told police that he looked up and saw Lee a short distance away.

Lee reportedly froze and asked for a pastor at the church before abruptly leaving the building.

After he left, witnesses saw Lee run into a nearby residence and they called the Houlton Police Department after discovering that a money bag was missing.

Police eventually located Lee, who confessed to stealing the bag and showed them where it was.

In court on Thursday, Lee apologized for his actions, and said that he had been out of the area receiving treatment for substance abuse issues for the past nine months.

“I apologize for everything and for my poor decisions,” he said, adding that he had been clean for the past nine months. “This is the best I’ve felt in my life, physically and mentally … I will continue with treatment. My life is coming together.”

Lee’s attorney, Brian Swales, told Hunter that Lee was doing “excellent,” and was holding down a part-time job.

Lee was ordered to serve 18 months in prison with all but seven days suspended on the burglary charge, which is a Class C felony. The sentences for the remaining charges were ordered to run concurrently with the sentence for the burglary charge. Lee already has served his sentence and will remain on probation for one year, with several conditions attached to the probation.

He also was ordered to pay $175 in restitution to the church, which Swales said Lee planned to do after Thursday’s hearing.