SOHO — A silver-haired serial burglar who has a craving for cameras was busted last month for stealing $5,000 worth of handbags from a Marc Jacobs store and $30,000 worth of photo equipment from a high-end shutterbug gallery, Manhattan prosecutors said.
Ira Goldberg, 68, who has served six stints in state prison for grand larceny and burglary convictions, is accused of snatching 13 handbags from the Marc Jacobs store in SoHo in the early morning on Sept. 11 by smashing in a window to open the door. Prosecutors said a day later he pilfered two camera lenses worth a total of $30,000 from Milk Studios, a fashion photo gallery in Chelsea.
Goldberg was busted because he was caught on camera at both locations, according to prosecutors. NYPD detectives identified Goldberg from surveillance video at Marc Jacobs and Milk Studios, court records show.
Goldberg, who was living at a hotel, was arrested Sept. 13 when he returned to Milk Studios. Police found a stolen iPhone and iPad on him at the time of the arrest, according to a criminal complaint. Goldberg swiped the iPhone at the Javits Center and the iPad from a Manhattan retail store, the complaint says.
When detectives went to his hotel room, they found a bank deposit slip showing an account balance of nearly $20,000. Manhattan prosecutors have started a civil forfeiture proceeding to freeze the account.
Goldberg was charged with felony grand larceny, burglary, petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. He was already awaiting sentencing in a separate case in Manhattan Criminal Court in which he pleaded guilty to burglary for stealing $15,000 worth worth of photo gear from a camera store in 2015. He's expected to receive three and half to seven years in prison in that case.
Goldberg's stints in state prison date back to 1987, according to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision. He most recently served three years in prison for grand larceny and was released in November 2014.
