Chaptzem Blog!      

Lakewood man gets 10 years for burglaries of Orthodox Jewish homes

A Superior Court judge yesterday sentenced a 22-year-
old Lakewood man with no prior criminal record to 10 years in prison
for a long string of burglaries that targeted homes of Orthodox Jews
in Lakewood.

Judge Vincent J. Grasso imposed the sentence on Dwayne Johnson of
Ridge Avenue for the 15 burglaries to which he pleaded guilty in
August.

Johnson also will be required to make restitution for the items he
stole. Supervising Assistant Ocean County Prosecutor Madelin F.
Einbinder said that when the amount is tallied, Johnson will owe
thousands of dollars.

The break-ins Johnson admitted to were among 35 charges in an
indictment which also accused him of taking items from some of the
homes he burglarized.

The crime spree lasted from September 2003 until mid-March, the
indictment said.

Johnson primarily stole cash and jewelry, the indictment said, but
from one home, he stole rings, cash, clothing and 100 pears.

He was caught March 18 after he and another man, who has not been
caught, burglarized an East End Avenue home, ransacked it, took keys
to the car parked outside and used them to open the vehicle. The
pair fled when the car alarm sounded, but police who responded to
the alarm followed footprints in fresh snow to Johnson. Police then
linked him to other burglaries.

Johnson's attorney, Patrick Patel, noted that Johnson had no
criminal record before the burglary spree, but added, "When he hit
the scene, he hit it off and running."

Johnson apologized to Grasso before he was sentenced.