Modified: July 29, 2020 9:08am
Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that 40-year-old Anthony R. Busch of Town of Tonawanda has been sentenced by Erie County Court Judge Susan Eagan to a determinate sentence of 7 years in prison. He was sentenced yesterday afternoon as a second felony offender.
The defendant admitted to committing a series of burglaries and thefts during the Summer of 2019 by victimizing individuals who he had worked for as a home improvement contractor.
During the early morning hours of August 30, 2019, the defendant and an accomplice broke into the residence of an elderly couple in the Town of Orchard Park. The accomplice allegedly brandished a gun during the incident. The elderly female victim’s purse was stolen.
The defendant admitted that on August 8, 2019, he stole credit cards, tools, jewelry and Buffalo Bills memorabilia from a residence in the Town of West Seneca while working on the job.
The defendant also admitted to stealing a large commercial trailer from a trucking company in the Town of Lancaster, which contained in excess of $50,000 worth of commercial towing equipment on August 24, 2019.
Busch pleaded guilty to one count of Burglary in the Second Degree, a Class “C” felony, one count of Burglary in the Third Degree, a Class “D” felony, and one count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a Class “D” felony, on December 23, 2019. As part of his plea, Busch was required to sign a Confession of Judgment in favor of the trucking business.
The investigation concerning Busch’s accomplice in the crime that occurred in Orchard Park is ongoing.
DA commends the investigative work by Det. Jamie Mazur of the Orchard Park Police Department, Det. Ronald Rozler of the Lancaster Police Department as well as the combined efforts of the West Seneca Police Department and the Cheektowaga Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Louis C. Mussari of the DA’s Felony Trials Bureau and Assistant District Attorney Christopher P. Jurusik of the DA’s Special Investigations and Prosecutions (SIP) Bureau.