PLATTE CITY, MO. ? A Kansas City man notorious for burglarizing homes while owners were at funerals has been given a 43-year prison sentence.

Circuit Judge Owens Lee Hull Jr. sentenced Dane S. Johnson Thursday to 43 years in prison. In May, Hull convicted Johnson of one count of first degree burglary, four counts of second degree burglary and five counts of stealing.

Johnson faced up to 78 years in prison.

“Four decades in prison is an appropriate sentence for this series of outrageous crimes,” Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd said.

Johnson and partner Landon N. Prothro were dubbed the “Funeral Day Burglars” after burglarizing more than 30 homes in five area counties from late 2005 to early 2006. They picked their victims by reading real estate listings and obituaries, and hit model homes, homes on real estate tours and homes where owners would be attending funerals.