Man Jailed for String of Burglaries

A man who admitted to burglarizing several Morris County homes was sentenced to 18 years in state prison Friday. He'll have to serve half of that before becoming eligible for parole.

"We aggressively prosecute individuals who violate the sanctity and peace of our homes," Morris County Prosecutor Robert A. Bianchi said after the sentencing of Kerry Honan, 36, of Sparta. "This case again proves the incredible success of our countywide Burglary Task Force, which continues to enjoy the partnership with our county and municipal agencies to proactively investigate, arrest and prosecute our counties most serious offenders."

Honan was captured in November of 2009 after burglarizing a residence in Rockaway Township, according to a statement from the prosecutor's office. He'd been caught after a brief foot pursuit as he fled from the residence, and items from the home were found in his possession and along the path of his flight, it said.

But that was just the final burglary in a string of incidents going back to March of 2009, and robbing homeowners of thousands of dollars worth of items, it said.

According to a timeline provided by the prosecutor's office:

• On March 5 of 2009, a residence in Mount Olive was burglarized and a large amount of jewelry and coins were stolen from the home.
• On March 10, another residence in Mount Olive was burglarized. Jewelry and other items in the amount of over $6,000 were stolen from the home.  
• On March 17, Honan was arrested in connection with the Mount Olive  burglaries and incarcerated in the Morris County Jail in lieu of bail.
• On April 14, he was released on bail.
• On May 2 and again on May 3, a residence in Jefferson Township was burglarized and items were taken from the home, including credit cards.
• On May 7, Honan was charged in connection with the burglaries and fraudulent use of the credit cards from the Jefferson incident. He was again lodged in the Morris County Jail in lieu of bail
• On Aug. 11, Honan posted bail and was released from the Morris County Jail.
• On Nov.  3, a residence in Parsippany NJ was burglarized and more than $4,000 worth of jewelry was stolen.
• On Nov. 19, the residence in Rockaway Township was burglarized, and Honan was caught.

Honan admitted to burglaries in May.

Assistant Prosecutor Brian DiGiacomo appeared before Judge Stuary Minkowitz Friday, and asked for Honan to receive a sentence of 30 years in state prison with 15 years of parole ineligibility, the prosecutor's office said. The judge instead opted for the 18 years.