A 54-year-old Long Beach man convicted of breaking into multiple homes was sentenced Tuesday to 15 years and eight months in state prison, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.
Epifanio Abraham Gonzalez pleaded no contest Tuesday to two felony counts of first-degree burglary, person present.
He also admitted he was previously convicted of first-degree burglary in 1991.
Prosecutor and Deputy District Attorney Brian Kang said on December 13, 2013, a homeowner returned home from work and found Gonzalez inside the residence on the 4300 block of Bellflower Boulevard.
The victim confronted Gonzalez, who then exited the house. The victim then saw Gonzalez go through an alley and leave the area in an older green Honda, Kang said.
An additional break-in occurred that month on December 31, 2013 on the 4500 block of Bellflower Boulevard when a different homeowner was asleep and heard a knock at the door. He did not answer, but then heard a noise coming from a bathroom window.
The homeowner then went to the bathroom and watched Gonzalez break into the house, Kang said. The victim confronted Gonzalez, who said he was looking for someone before leaving the house through a back door.
Both victims offered descriptions of the suspect, eventually leading the Long Beach Police Department to a previous case in October of 2013, where another burglary occurred on the 4600 block of Bellflower.
Authorities began investigating the burglaries and were able to identify and arrest Gonzalez in connection to the incidents on March 18, 2014.
Kang said fingerprints, as well as property found in Gonzalez’s green Honda, linked the defendant to the burglaries.