Two From Ulster Guilty of Violent Burglary

Two men plead guilty to a violent Ulster County home burglary where 5 people, including 3 children, were zip tied and mouths duct-taped shut.

In Ulster County Court, Lonnie Taylor, 35, and 22-year-old Nickolas Torres both plead guilty to 1st-degree burglary, a a class B violent felony.

According to the Ulster County District Attorney’s Office, on Jan. 7, Taylor, Torries, and Davonte Jones, armed with a shotgun and two handguns entered Torres’s ex-girlfriend’s apartment.

The victim was at home with another adult babysitting four children, a 10-year-old, his two younger twin sisters, and a 2-year-old.

When the group walked into the apartment they demanded money and drugs. Then they zip tied the wrists and duct-taped the mouths of each victim, except the 2-year-old girl.

The defendants took the victim’s cellphones, cash and wallet. The Ellenville Police Department responded to the scene and search warrants led to the recovery of the two handguns, duct tape, and one of the cell phones.

The shotgun had been destroyed and discarded piece by piece throughout the Village of Ellenville.

An Ulster County Grand Jury later indicted Taylor, Torres and Jones for 1st-degree burglary and other crimes stemming from the home invasion.

Taylor and Torres face lengthy prison terms when sentenced in September.

Jones’ case remains pending at this time.