SCDA: Cat Burglar Who Stole from Several Lindy Homes Sentenced

A prolific cat burglar who broke into and stole from several homes in Lindenhurst last year and described by Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota as “a one-man crime wave" was sentenced on Thursday to five years in state prison by Judge Martin Efman.

Errol D. Barham, 23, of Copiague, was charged with burglarizing homes in Lindenhurst last Summer. He picked his targets as he roamed residential neighborhoods on his bicycle, according to law enforcement officials.

“Barham was a genuine menace to the community. His modus operandi was to enter houses through an unlocked window between midnight and 4 a.m. to steal laptop computers, jewelry, credit cards and cash,” District Attorney Spota said in a release about Barham's April 4 sentencing.

“The most disturbing aspect of this case is that most of these homes were occupied at the time Barham robbed them in the middle of the night,” Spota added.

The district attorney’s office recommended a sentence of 15 years’ incarceration at the sentencing.

The flurry of break-ins prompted Suffolk Police to form a task force of police officers and detectives, many of whom worked overnight shifts during the spree.

In June 2012 police also issued an alert to residents to be vigilant as they investigated a series of residential burglaries in the Town of Babylon.

In that alert police noted extra marked and unmarked patrol units were deployed in the area.

A few days later Inspector Gerard Gigante, First Precinct commanding officer, told Lindenhurst Patch these break-ins appeared to be opportunistic, and therefore advised residents to "lock windows and doors."

Barham was arrested at 1:30 a.m. on July 4, 2012, noted Spota's office in the release about the senetencing, as he rode his bicycle casing a North Lindenhurst neighborhood.

A patrol sergeant, seeing a bicyclist on a warm night wearing a heavy sweatshirt with the hood up, stopped the defendant for questioning and discovered Barham possessed burglars’ tools; a razor, screwdrivers, a box cutter and two pairs of gloves, according to Spota's office.

Police said at the time they found a mostly empty backpack on his person, containing the aforementioned items, plus some pliers. He was arrested then for possession of burglary items.

A further investigation after obtaining a search warrant for Barham's home found many reported stolen items including jewelry, cameras, laptops, an iPad and credit cards.

Spota said at a press conference a few days later Barham would use a box cutter to slit an opening through screen windows, then push open sliding windows or doors to get into homes usually between 12 a.m. and 4 a.m. while homeowners were sound asleep.

According to detectives at the time of his arrest, formal charges against Barnham included six counts of burglary in the second degree, one count of attempted burglary in the second degree and one count of unlawful possession of marijuana.

Related Coverage:

• SCDA: Cat Burglar Who Stole from Several Lindy Homes Last Year Sentenced
• Suffolk County District Attorney: More Charges Possible for Local Cat Burglar
• Officials: Copiague Man Charged with Several Lindenhurst Burglaries
• Suffolk Police: Recent Burglary Spree Is Opportunistic
• Suffolk Police Investigate Rash of Burglaries in Babylon Town
• Suffolk Police See Uptick in Burglaries in North Lindenhurst

Connect:  Facebook | Twitter | Newsletters | Blogging | Posting Photos | Announcements | Events