GUILDERLAND — David A. Hollenbeck, dubbed "the McKownville burglar," was sentenced last week to 15 years in state prison. Judge Stephen W. Herrick also ordered Hollenbeck to five years of post-release supervision.

Hollenbeck, 44, of 1939 Seventh Ave., first floor, Watervliet, pleaded guilty on June 14 to burglarizing several homes in McKownville and Colonie.

Between November and April, as burglaries occurred in the Guilderland hamlet on the edge of Albany, members of the McKownville Improvement Association circulated e-mails warning each other.

It was neighbors’ keeping a watch on nearby homes that led to Hollenbeck’s arrest.

On April 15, as many police officers were in McKownville investigating an unrelated incident, a resident called to say that a man broke his neighbor’s window, at 9 McKown Road, and went inside.

Guilderland Police found Hollenbeck crouched behind a bed in the residence. He had jewelry and a piggy bank on him, police said, and he confessed to a series of other break-ins. In one case, police said, he stole over $1,000 worth of jewelry.

District Attorney David Soares praised the neighbor who called 911.
"The combination of an alert citizenry and rapidly-responding officers from the Guilderland Police force broke this case and saved who knows how many others from having their homes invaded," Soares said in a statement.