Ulster burglar faces nine years after guilty plea

An Ulster County man pleaded guilty Friday to breaking into a home last year and stealing property while an elderly woman was sleeping, officials said.

According to a plea deal, Christopher Rion, 22, faces nine years behind bars because of a 2008 burglary conviction and the fact that the residence he burglarized in this case was occupied when he committed the crime.

On Sept. 21, 2011, Rion broke into a home in Connelly and left with unspecified property, officials said. A man returned home to find his bedroom window shattered, but was relieved to find that his elderly mother, who was sleeping in a nearby room, was unharmed, police said.

Ulster County Sheriff's Department Det. Debra Robertson led the investigation and found blood on the broken window. She matched the DNA with that of Rion, who had been convicted of another burglary in 2008, officials said.

Rion admitted committing the second-degree burglary in Ulster County Court, District Attorney Holley Carnright said in a statement. He will remain in the Ulster County jail until his sentencing, which has been set for April 16.

Russell Schindler of the Ulster Public Defender's office, could not be reached for comment Friday.