Courts (Credit: MediaNews Group)
A Telford Borough man who was allegedly found with a machete in his backpack during a residential burglary over the summer pleaded guilty last month to a felony charge of criminal trespassing and was sentenced in Montgomery County court to 109 days time served to 23 months in county jail, followed by one year of probation.
Terence Lipford, 40, of the unit block of Grandview Drive, is also banned from the victim's home on the 500 block of South Main Street and is to have no contact with them.
Lipford was charged by police in August with felony burglary of an occupied structure, felony criminal trespassing, misdemeanor possessing an instrument of crime, misdemeanor criminal mischief, and misdemeanor disorderly conduct, according to court documents. All other charges were dismissed at the Nov. 10 hearing.
Telford Police said they responded to a burglary in progress at 2:50 a.m. July 25, 2025, at a South Main Street home, where residents reported being awakened by a man — later identified as Lipford — breaking into their locked bedroom, police said.
The victims told police they did not know the man, who repeatedly asked about his children and ran from the residence after being told to leave, according to the complaint.
Officers found broken glass from a side door and a yellow snow shovel nearby. A backpack containing a machete was located on the sidewalk, along with a wallet and identification for Lipford, police said.
A K-9 track led officers to his nearby residence, where police detained him.
Lipford allegedly told investigators he broke in after hearing voices in his head claiming children were being harmed inside, and admitted using drugs prior to the incident.
He also described using the shovel to break the glass at the home on the 500 block. The victims later identified Lipford as the intruder, police said.
Lipford was represented by public defender Pietro D'Angelo.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
