Morris County Prosecutor Fredric M. Knapp, Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Acting Chief of Investigations Chris Kimker, and Chief Stephen Beecher of the Mount Olive Township Police Department announce the sentencing of Casey R. Powers of Morris Township, New Jersey. The sentence stems from a 2015 residential burglary involving stolen firearms in Mount Olive Township.
Officials say Powers was sentenced on Tuesday, July 2, 2019 by Hon. Donald G. Collester, J.S.C. (retired and temporarily assigned on recall) to an aggregate sentence of 15 years New Jersey State Prison, with 13-and-a-half years that must be served before he becomes eligible for parole.
According to officials, on April 22, 2019 a Morris County jury returned guilty verdicts on counts of second degree Burglary, second degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, four counts of third degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, six counts of third degree Theft, fourth degree Criminal Mischief, third degree Possession of CDS, and disorderly persons Hindering Prosecution. Due to a previous conviction for robbery, he was also found guilty of five counts of first degree Unlawful Possession of a Weapon and five counts of second degree Certain Persons Not to Possess a Firearm.
This verdict followed a seven-day jury trial before the Judge Collester.
The charges stem from a residential burglary that occurred on December 2, 2015 in Mount Olive Township.
The defendant forcibly entered the home through a rear deck window and stole various items of jewelry, one handgun, two shotguns, and two rifles. During the course of the investigation, some of the jewelry, two rifles, and one shotgun were recovered.
Assistant Prosecutor Tara Wang and Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Christopher Schellhorn, both assigned to the Major Crimes Unit of the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office, represented the State during the trial and sentencing.
A number of Morris County law enforcement agencies contributed to the investigation and successful prosecution of the defendant, including the Mount Olive Police Department, Morris Township Police Department, Jefferson Township Police Department, Morris County Sheriff’s Office, and Morris County Prosecutor’s Office.
Prosecutor Knapp thanked all the officers and agents who participated in this investigation and prosecution for their continued exceptional work. He stated, “This is just another fine example of the collaboration between Morris County law enforcement agencies in solving crime in our community.”