'Spider-Man' burglar gets 3 years in prison
Taleon Goffney, acrobatic rooftop burglar and twin gay-porn star, took the stage at Camden County Courthouse today where a judge sentenced him to three years in prison.
Taleon Goffney, acrobatic rooftop burglar and twin gay-porn star, took the stage at Camden County Courthouse today where a judge sentenced him to three years in prison.
The 27-year-old from Pennsauken - who originally faced a long list of charges - told the judge he appreciated the consideration given for a deal he made with prosecutors to plead guilty to burglary and resisting arrest in exchange for a lenient sentence.
In some ways it was yet another unbelievable escape for the man police nicknamed "Spider-Man" after he swam to freedom across a South Jersey pond while handcuffed in 2006.
"I just want to apologize for my past actions and I won't be continuing that lifestyle any more," the buff Goffney told Superior Court Judge Samuel D. Natal.
Although it was unclear whether Goffney's "lifestyle" remark referred specifically to his criminal history, defense attorney Jeffrey Zucker said he believed his client had no plans to return to the adult-entertainment field. Goffney had made something of a name for himself performing with his brother in online flicks such as Marc and the Twins, with porn superstar Marc Williams.
Goffney's brother, Keyontyli, and his mother, Towana, had faced criminal charges for their parts in the family's spectacular string of burglaries in Pennsylvania. Charges were dropped against the Towana Goffney, identified as her sons' lookout. Keyontyli Goffney was released in September on time served after he pleaded guilty to burglary offenses and agreed to testify against his brother.
Taleon Goffney's audience in the courtroom yesterday included his mother and sister, to whom he blew kisses before sheriff's deputies escorted him back to a holding cell.
Prosecutors identified Taleon Goffney as the mastermind behind a burglary operation that stretched from Florida to South Jersey. Oftentimes he would saw through the roofs of businesses and shimmy down a wire to collect his bootie.
Charges have resolved in Pennsylvania, where Goffney must serve at least two years on a four-year sentence, and Florida, Alabama and Delaware.
In Camden yesterday, the judge gave him credit for more than 600 days served. Because he is eligible for parole in New Jersey after serving 11 months, once he is released in Pennsylvania, Goffney is likely to go free, Zucker said.
His crimes in South Jersey were among his most memorable. On May 4, 2006, police spotted during a drug surveillance operation in Clemonton. They arrested him on drug charges and put him in the rear of a cruiser.
While en route to the police station, the handcuffed Goffney broke through the vehicle's rear window with his head, jumped out and ran away. By the time police could stop the car, Goffney had jumped into a pond and swam to the other side, eluding capture.
On Jan. 2, 2007, police said Goffney broke through the roof of Carool's Liquor Store on Admiral Wilson Boulevard in Pennsauken where lowered himself on a wire. Though he was caught, he managed to get away from police and run to the Cooper River where he swam to the opposite bank and was rearrested.
"He's like Houdini," Zucker said, adding that law enforcement called Goffney Spider-Man. He pulled off so many burglaries that law enforcement in three states created a task force of 30 officers to catch the bandit.
As part of yesterday's plea bargain, Goffney must pay the $1,400 insurance deductible for damaging Clemonton's police cruiser and refund $10,800 to the owner of Carool's for damages to the business as well as fines and court costs.