AUSTIN MAN choked a family member, carried a gun he was banned from owning, and drove drunk after a violent fight with his ex on a highway overpass. Each time, he walked away with a few days in jail. He was just arrested for selling cocaine at Barton Springs.
He’s already back on the street on a bond.
Mark Vara was one of four men rounded up last month in APD's sting at the free side of the pool after a series of break-ins.
In 2020, Vara was arrested for choking a family member. He skipped court and disappeared for months. When he was finally caught, DA Jose Garza's office knocked the felony down to a misdemeanor. He got two days in jail.
In 2023, he was caught carrying a gun, which he wasn't legally allowed to have because of that conviction. Police also said he snuck pot into jail. Garza's office declined the jail charge and reduced the gun charge. He got five days.
In February of last year, a 911 caller's line picked up what sounded like a physical fight. Deputies found Vara on the Highway 71 overpass, his car half-blocking a lane, driver's window shattered, clothes caked in mud, holding his dog. His ex-gf was gone because a stranger helped her get a ride to a gas station.
He skipped court on that one too. Three days in jail.
Three months after that sentence, police say he was dealing cocaine at Barton Springs.
His bonded out with $2,500.
15 cases since 2012. Every felony charge dismissed, declined, or reduced. Longest sentence: 90 days.