A Lehighton man charged in the Aug. 28, 2016, burglary of a West Penn Township home from which nine firearms were stolen waived his right to a preliminary hearing Wednesday before District Judge James R. Ferrier of Orwigsburg.

Cole R. Kerschner, 26, of Lehighton, is charged with burglary; criminal trespass-entering a structure; 15 counts each of theft and receiving stolen property; and criminal mischief.Ferrier agreed to reduce Kerschner's bail to $10,000 percentage bail from $10,000 cash bail.That means Kerschner would post $1,000 in cash or property to gain his freedom.He was represented by Matthew J. Rapa.A second man police say was involved in the burglary, Willis E. Negron, 36, of Tamaqua, was scheduled to have a preliminary hearing, but that didn't happen due to a conflict with his lawyer, Schuylkill County public defender Christopher M. Riedlinger.Reidlinger also represents a third defendant in the burglary, Kayla M. Smith, 26, of Palmerton.Negron also is charged with burglary; criminal trespass-entering a structure; 15 counts each of theft and receiving stolen property; and criminal mischief.He is being held in Schuylkill County prison on $25,000 bail.Schuylkill County Assistant District Attorney Kimm Montone is prosecuting the cases.Smith on Jan. 24 waived her right to a preliminary hearing. She remains in prison under $10,000 bail.A fourth person accused in the case, Kendra L. Crostley, 24, on Nov. 22, 2016, waived her preliminary hearing before Ferrier.She faces the same charges as Smith.Crostley remains free on $25,000 unsecured bail."We want to recover the guns and get them off the street. That's our main concern," Montone said.According to affidavits of probable cause filed by West Penn police, the three broke into a home on Penn Drive in Andreas at 12:50 a.m. Aug. 28, 2016.Former township patrolman Russell E. Dawson spoke with the homeowner, Peter Kropf, who told him he had arrived home at 12:50 a.m. and found an open, broken window, with a large concrete block placed beneath it. A light was on in the house, although he had turned off the lights before leaving.The house had been ransacked, and several firearms had been stolen, including two loaded handguns, a .357-caliber Ruger SA revolver and a .32-caliber H & R Rimfire revolver.A laptop computer, prescription pills, a coin collection and tools were also taken.Kropf told Dawson he had left his home at about 10 p.m. to take a friend to Harrisburg.He said he and Crostley had been in a relationship that ended about three weeks before the break-in.Kropf told the patrolman he had gotten several phone calls and a text message from her that evening.He gave Dawson memory cards from two of the trail cameras he had installed in and near his home.One of the cards showed Crostley, Smith, Negron and Kerschner, both of whom wore masks.