MCDA BURGLARY TASK FORCE TRACKS DOWN SERIAL BURGLAR WHO TARGETED NW PORTLAND BUILDINGS. HE’S HEADING TO PRISON FOR MORE THAN FOUR YEARS. - 09/10/26

CASE: 26CR19882                                                                           September 10, 2026

Portland, OR- John Benjamin Newsom, 50 years old, was convicted today of 4 counts of Burglary in the First Degree and 2 counts of Burglary in the Second Degree. Judge Bryan Francesconi sentenced Newsom to 50 months prison.

The convictions follow a string of burglaries that began in November of 2025. 

Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Alex Garcia, head of the Multnomah County Burglary Task Force, prosecuted the case for the State.

After the plea and sentencing he said: “This sentence sends a clear message. People who break into buildings will be held accountable and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Enough is enough.”
 

The District Attorney’s Office would like to thank the Burglary Task Force, Portland Police Officer Katrina Ensley, and the Portland Police Bureau for excellent investigative work on this case.

THE FACTS:

The case involved 7 incidents of burglary at 4 separate buildings. All incidents were caught on video surveillance.

On November 18, 2025, Newsom broke into 38 Davis, an apartment building located at 38 NW Davis Street. Newsom scaled the building to reach a second story fire escape and then climbed up to the fourth floor, where he broke into an office. Newsom stole a number of items from that office before breaking into the building’s bicycle storage room. Newsom rode away on a bicycle that he stole from that bicycle storage room.

On January 14, 2026 and March 31, 2026, Newsom broke into Alder 9, an apartment building located at 715 SE 9th Avenue. Newsom used a crow bar to gain entry and stole items from a locked maintenance room that were reported to be worth over $1,000.

On February 9 and February 10, 2026, Newsom broke into Park Place, a condominium building located at 922 NW 11th Avenue. Newsom used a crowbar on each date to gain entry, causing damage to Park Place. Newsom broke into a locked bicycle storage room on each date to steal multiple bicycles that were reported to be worth over $1,000.

On March 11, 2026 and March 18, 2026, Newsom broke into The Pinnacle, a condominium building located at 1255 NW 9th Avenue. Newsom used a crow bar to gain entry on each date, causing damage to The Pinnacle. Newsom stole several packages from the building’s mail room. Newsom additionally stole multiple bicycles from the building’s garage.

The Burglary Task Force investigated the case. Using video surveillance from each incident, the Burglary Task Force identified Newsom.

                                                    ###MCDA###