‘Ninja Burglar’ pleads guilty, will be sentenced to 25 years in prison: DA

A prolific burglar who authorities said admitted to targeting over 100 homes in three states over a period of 10 years is expected to spend the next two decades behind bars.

Robert Constanzo, 46, pleaded guilty on Thursday to three counts of second-degree burglary for his decade of break-ins which allegedly spanned across the tri-state area.

Authorities believe that Costanzo was responsible for nearly 160 burglaries since 2005—most notably, a 2007 incident in Dongan Hills, Staten Island where a man said he used a steak knife to fight off a home invader “dressed like a ninja” and wielding nunchucks, theNew York Daily News reported.

Staten Island District Attorney Michael E. McMahon said Costanzo made off with more than $4 million in goods over that decade, including cash, jewelry, watches and other luxury items.

Costanzo entered his guilty plea on Thursday morning and on June 14 he is scheduled to be sentenced to 25 years in prison and five years post-release supervision.

According to prosecutors, Costanzo admitted to Staten Island burglaries in 2011, 2013 and 2015

Authorities said they made the connection between the dozens of burglaries after identifying similar patterns among crimes in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York.

The universal plea agreement made by Costanzo will be concurrent to jail terms in the three states.

“Finally unmasked as the ‘Ninja Burglar,’ Mr. Costanzo has taken responsibility for these three burglaries and will receive a substantial prison sentence of 25 years,” McMahon said in a statement. “For 10 years, the residents of Grymes Hill, Emerson Hill, Todt Hill, Lighthouse Hill, Castleton Corners, Silver Lake, West Brighton and Grasmere slept in fear of being burglarized by a brazen thief. Now, they can rest assured knowing that Mr. Costanzo will be securely behind bars.”

Costanzo’s lawyer met with several law enforcement officials in February to work out a plea bargain, prosecutors said in a statement. Last week, the man recorded a video statement in which he admitted his role in the burglaries, McMahon said.

Costanzo is also a convicted sex offender, admitting to four rapes in Florida during the 1990s and another rape in New York in 1989, according to the Daily News.