A man who police say stole millions of dollars in jewelry, guns and cash from upscale Newport Beach homes has been convicted of burglary.
Paul Layton Keesling, 50, — dubbed the "Dinner Time Bandit" by Newport Beach police — was convicted in a Fullerton courtroom Thursday for stealing $250,000 in cash and jewelry in 2007, according to the Daily Pilot’s Joseph Serna.
If the judge accounts for Keesling’s previous felony strikes, Keesling faces 40 years to life in prison at his March 19 sentencing, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Terry Cleaveland.
Though he was convicted of just the one burglary, Newport Beach police say Keesling was responsible for more than 20 similar crimes in the city. Police claim he stole millions of dollars’ worth of jewelry, guns and cash. He often burglarized unoccupied homes between 5 and 11 p.m., officials said.
Authorities speculate Keesling was stealing from people’s homes for more than 20 years up and down the Southern California coast, from Santa Barbara to San Diego.
— Joseph Serna