Berkeley Man Found Guilty Of Knifepoint Robbery Has 30 Prior Convictions: Prosecutor

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Michael Allan Guerino has more than 30 crimes attributed to him, crimes he's been convicted of in the past, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office says.

But they hope a jury's verdict Wednesday finding him guilty of a knifepoint robbery of a store clerk in January 2016 will get the 53-year-old Berkeley Township man sent to jail for good.

Guerino was convicted Wednesday in the Jan. 29, 2016 armed robbery of the Dollar Tree on Hooper Avenue in Toms River, said Al Della Fave, spokesman for the prosecutor's office. The jury of nine women and three men reached its verdict in about three hours on Wednesday, he said.

Guerino also is accused of a string of eight smash-and-grab burglaries in Toms River, Berkeley and Lakewood in February 2016; Della Fave said Guerino is under indictment in those cases but they are still pending.

Testimony at trial said Guerino, dressed in a hooded sweatshirt and gloves, walked into the store about 9:40 p.m. that day. He approached the cashier and tossed a candy bar on the counter as though he planned to buy it, but as the 24-year-old woman attempted to ring it up, he walked around behind the counter and pulled knife, according to the testimony. He pressed the knife into her back and demanded she open the register, threatening to "stick" her if she tried to call for help, according to the testimony. When she was unable to open the register, Guerino ripped the cash drawer out and fled with $234.96 and the cash register drawer, according to the trial testimony, Della Fave said.

Toms River police quickly developed Guerino as a suspect, and a search warrant executed at his home in the Silver Ridge section of Berkeley Township turned up clothing worn by the defendant on the night of the robbery, Della Fave said. The cashier also identified him as the robber, he said.

Guerino was found guilty of first-degree armed robbery, third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, third-degree aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, fourth-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, and fourth-degree theft before Superior Court Judge Therese A. Cunningham.

Guerino was charged in February 2016 with the smash-and-grab burglaries at eight businesses, six of them on Route 37 in Toms River, plus B&B Party Store in Lakewood and Oh What A Bagel! on Route 9 in Berkeley. Evidence connecting him to those burglaries was found at the time the search warrant in the armed robbery was executed, Toms River Police spokesman Ralph Stocco said at the time.

Guerino's sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 15, Della Fave said.

The case was prosecuted by Ocean County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Michael Abatemarco. Toms River Police Detectives Steven Bucci, Patrick Jacques and Louis Santora all testified at the trial. Additionally, the jury heard testimony from Toms River Police Officers Matthew Broderick and Anthony Claps, along with Ocean County Sheriff’s Officer Ralph Laudicina, Della Fave said.

Michael Allan Guerino, provided by Ocean County Prosecutor's Office