DA: Man charged with breaking into 10 Riverhead homes over two years

A Riverhead man was indicted Thursday on charges that he burglarized 10 residences in 2017 and 2018, authorities said.

Taiheem McKay, 23, was charged with 10 counts of burglary in the second degree, Suffolk County District Attorney Timothy Sini and the Riverhead Police Department announced in a news release.

The Suffolk County Department of Probation traced McKay to the burglary locations through a GPS ankle monitor, officials said. Authorities did not say why McKay was on probation.

He was arraigned on the indictment Thursday before Suffolk County acting Supreme Court Justice Mark Cohen. Bail was set at $250,000 cash or $500,000 bond, the release said.

“This indictment is the result of excellent investigative work by detectives in the Riverhead Police Department, who used technology and the sharing of intelligence to find the alleged perpetrator responsible for these burglaries,” Sini said in the news release. “These were brazen acts committed in broad daylight by an individual who clearly has no respect for the law.”

McKay is charged in connection with burglaries in Riverhead. He allegedly stole cash, jewelry, designer sneakers, designer belts and a wallet from the residences, the release said.

If convicted, McKay faces a maximum sentence of 5 to 15 years in prison on each count of the indictment, which could run consecutively, the release said.

McKay was also arrested by the Riverhead Police Department on July 16 in connection with a burglary in Riverhead on May 4 in which he allegedly stole several hundred dollars, the release said. He was indicted on July 26 on charges of burglary in the second degree and criminal mischief in the fourth degree,  a misdemeanor, in connection with that incident.

The status of those charges could not be determined Thursday night.