The man who burglarized Cazenovia Sports Bowl three times in three weeks and was eventually caught hiding in the building ceiling on his fourth burglary attempt last October has been sentenced to up to seven years in state prison, although he was given an opportunity to enter a drug treatment program and possibly be released sooner. He was also sentenced to pay more than $10,500 in restitution.
Eric L. Crysler, 29, of Nelson Street in Cazenovia, was arrested Oct. 8, 2015, and charged with the attempted burglary of Cazenovia Sports Bowl after he was located in the ceiling of the bowling alley and was found with a bowling bag in his possession containing stolen property. Crysler was charged with burglary in the third degree, a class D felony, and with criminal mischief in the fourth degree, a misdemeanor.
While Crysler was charged only with the Oct. 8 burglary attempt and arrest, he was also a suspect in the previous three burglaries at Caz Sports Bowl as well as a burglary that occurred at Cazenovia Apartments at 24 Nelson St. — the apartment complex in which Crysler lived.
Crysler was indicted for burglary in the third degree, criminal mischief in the fourth degree and petit larceny, according to Madison County Assistant District Attorney Robert Mascari. Crysler pleaded guilty to the burglar charge on March 7.
Crysler, a second time felony offender, was sentenced on May 27 to 3.5 to 7 years indeterminate incarceration to be served as a sentence of parole supervision, and was fined $10,500 to be paid in restitution for his crimes, which was the maximum sentence allowed in the case, Mascari said.
Mascari said Crysler’s sentence included the opportunity for him to attend a drug treatment program. According to Mascari, if a person found guilty of a crime is identified to have a drug problem, the presiding judge can sentence that person to a drug rehabilitation program. If that program is successfully completed, that person will be released on parole sooner than if he or she served the full prison term.
If Crysler does not complete the program successfully, he will do the remainder of his prison sentence and not be eligible for parole until the 3.5 years of his sentence have elapsed, Mascari said.
“I think this was excellent recognition of police work by the Cazenovia Police Department that literally caught the suspect red-handed with the tools and the proceeds in the bag next to him in the ceiling,” Mascari said. “I’m happy to say that Crysler will be out of the community and hopefully will get the treatment he needs as well. If not, he will spend some significant time in state prison.”
Crysler’s crime spree included four break-ins of Cazenovia Sports Bowl in September 2015, during which thousands of dollars and various items of bowling alley property were stolen from the business. He was also a suspect in a reported break-in burglary during the late night/early morning hours of Sept. 13 to 14, when one or more persons broke into the Cazenovia Apartments at 24 Nelson St. and allegedly stole a “couple hundred dollars” in quarters from the laundry room.
Crysler’s arrest occurred as the result of Cazenovia Police Officer Will Stevens deciding to drive by Cazenovia Sports Bowl early one morning just to check it out because he knew the business had been burglarized the night before. He noticed the lights were off and some other inconsistencies, after which he stopped to investigate and then he noticed movement inside the building, said Cazenovia Police Chief Michael Hayes at the time of the arrest.
Cazenovia police mobilized and called the county sheriff’s office and the state police for assistance, so they could set up a perimeter around the building and the suspect could not escape, Hayes said.
Officers gained entry to the building with a key supplied by the owner and, after a 30-minute search of the premises, found Crysler “up in the ceiling panels above the sports bowl,” Hayes said.
Hayes said police found property stolen from the bowling alley that night in Crylser’s possession — more than $500 in cash and $10,000 in lottery tickets — and subsequently found about $23 in tip money and several bottles of alcohol allegedly stolen from the sports bowl the night before, as well as some burglary tools.
