The Cupertino Courier

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Victims' list grows in Cupertino, Sunnyvale burglaries

By Cody Kraatz and Stephen Baxter

Burglary victims continue to come forward in the case against the man law enforcement officials believe is Cupertino's "dinnertime bandit" and the culprit in a string of burglaries on the south side of Sunnyvale.

Larry Bryan, 53, of San Jose, is facing at least 20 counts of residential burglary, one count of resisting arrest and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, said Clarissa Hamilton, a Santa Clara County deputy district attorney.

A string of burglaries in 2005 and 2006 in the two cities was attributed to the same burglar, but there wasn't a suspect until Bryan was arrested Dec. 30. Sunnyvale public safety officers, responding to a call that a house was being burglarized on the 700 block of Mahogany Lane, confronted Bryan at the home's front door and chased him on foot before arresting him.

Officers found property in Bryan's possession that had been taken in an earlier residential burglary. Additional evidence against Bryan was recovered following a search of his house, according to authorities.

Bryan's wife, Joy, 51, was also arrested and charged with concealing and withholding stolen property and being an accessory to her husband's crimes, Hamilton said.

Bryan, who is in custody and has a burglary conviction from 1990, entered a not-guilty plea Feb. 7. A pre-trial court hearing is scheduled for April 6.

The district attorney's office is not in a rush to go to trial because it wants to give officers time to investigate if Bryan is linked to other burglaries.

The "dinnertime bandit" targeted the homes of Asians, typically entering homes in the early evening and taking primarily gold jewelry.

"Victims keep coming forward, and a lot of homes were hit," said Hamilton, calling the case file "voluminous."

She said all the burglaries that Bryan is charged with so far involve Asian victims.

Hamilton said there's so much recovered jewelry that officers are still showing it to reported victims.

Following a rash of burglaries in December in the Ponderosa Park neighborhood of Sunnyvale, public safety officers distributed fliers alerting residents that a repeat burglar was at work. The burglar had gained entry through windows and unlocked back doors in the late afternoon and evening.

Anyone with additional information Det. James Jarrett at 408.868.6630, or Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety Det. Jeff Hunter at 408.730-7131.