Alleged Crestwood Burglar Faces Additional Charges, Bail Increased to $75K

The 26-year-old man accused of stealing from several homes during a months-long string of burglaries in the Crestwood Villages faces additional charges and an increase in bail. 

Jason M. Clancy has been in the Ocean County Jail in Toms River since last week when police arrested him at the Mill Road home in Crestwood Village VI where he lives with his parents. Now that more charges have been issued, bail for Clancy has risen to $75,000 with no 10 percent option, according to Capt. Lisa Parker. 

"As more physical evidence has been recovered to link him to further burglaries, Jason M. Clancy has since been charged with four additional counts of burglary, eight additional counts of attempted burglary, 12 additional counts of criminal mischief and three counts of theft," Parker said Tuesday. 

The initial charges filed against Clancy when he was arrested last Friday were three counts of burglary, two counts of theft and three counts of criminal mischief. He was held in the Ocean County Jail at the time on $35,000 bail, no 10 percent option. Parker said then that the investigation was ongoing and more charges likely were forthcoming. 

A positive fingerprint identification obtained from one of the targeted homes led police to identify the man as the alleged burglar. His name was not immediately released last Thursday night while he was being processed, Chief of Police Brian Klimakowski said then.

Police were investigating multiple burglaries and attempted burglaries in Crestwood Villages I, VI and VII, in which unlocked doors and windows were used to enter homes. The total number of completed or attempted burglaries in the villages had risen to 60 since early July; a third of those were entered and money and jewelry was taken, according to Parker. 

Even though additional charges were issued, Parker said Tuesday that detectives continue to investigate and yet more charges may be pending.

Village VI, where the suspect lives, appeared to have been hit the hardest by the burglaries, Klimakowski has said. Officers believed that the younger suspect may have been living in Crestwood Village with older family members given the proximity of the houses targeted, the chief has said. 

Assisting with the investigation were members of the Ocean County Sheriff's Department Crimalistics Investigation Unit and K9 units, the Toms River Township Police Department and the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office, Parker said. 

Parker asked that anyone with information on the burglaries contact Detective Craig Beaulieu 732-657-2009, ext. 4205.