A second person was the victim of an armed robbery involving a Craig’s List scam on Holland Road in South Orange, said Police Chief James Chelel. Police believe the same suspect may have been involved in both cases.
In a previous incident, which occurred in late September, a man was robbed of his iPhone on Holland Road as he attempted to sell the phone to a man he had communicated with on Craig’s List. The man told the victim he had a gun and demanded the phone, after which he ran away toward Newark, said Chelel.
In the more recent incident, a Paterson man told police he was robbed on Holland Road on October 8 at approximately 9:30 a.m. as he waited to meet a man he had corresponded with through Craig’s List about purchasing iPhone 6 phones.
While he sat in his car, a man approached and pulled out a silver semi-automatic hand gun, pointed it at him and robbed him of his cash, a cell phone and some keys, said Chelel. The man, described as black, 6′ tall, unshaven, wearing a black sweat suit with a white stripe down the sleeves, white sneakers and a white cap, was last seen running down Longfellow Avenue in Newark.
Police believe the same man is responsible for both armed robberies as well as several similar robberies in Newark, said Chelel.
“Don’t buy a phone on Craig’s List, and don’t meet someone in a secluded area,” said Chelel, who said police have leads they are actively pursuing with Newark Police.
Here is the rest of the South Orange police blotter:
10/20/2014
Theft of vehicle
A resident of Randolph Pl. stated that sometime between midnight and 8:30am on 10-19-14 an unknown actor(s) had removed his vehicle (1994 Honda) which had been parked on the street. The vehicle was recovered this date in the city of Orange.
Assault
A teacher at the South Orange Middle school stated that on 10-17-14 at approximately 4:30pm she was exiting the school when a 13 year old male student had thrown a coin at the teacher striking her in the head. The Juvenile Detective Bureau is investigating the incident.
Police Information
A Ridgewood Rd. resident stated that sometime during the overnight hours of 10-19-14 an unknown actor(s) had placed a lawn chair from the rear of his yard up against his dwelling and under a first floor window. There were no signs of an attempt to gain entry on the window or any other area of the dwelling.
10/17/2014
10/16/2014
Burglary/arrest
Abdus Bey, a 27 year old East Orange resident was arrested on 10/14/14 after an investigation conducted by the Detective Bureau had determined via forensic evidence that the subject had committed a daytime burglary to a dwelling on Meeker St. The subject was transported to police headquarters from his residence and processed accordingly.
Theft from garage
A Halsey Pl. resident stated that sometime between 10-13-14 and 10-15-14 an unknown actor(s) had entered his garage and removed three bicycles. Two of the bicycles were adult bikes color black and the third bicycle was a child’s bike color green.
Burglary to Garage / Theft
An Irving Avenue resident reported that sometime between 12:00 pm, Sunday 10-12-14 and 6:00 pm, Tuesday 10-14-14 actor(s) unknown entered the garage of the residence and removed a red, 24″ Mongoose bicycle. The incident is under investigation.
Burglary
A Prospect Street resident reported that between the hours of 11:00 am and 5:45 pm on Saturday, 10-11-14 actor(s) unknown entered his residence and removed several hundred dollars worth of Apple products (iPad 2 & iPhone 6). It appears the actor(s) broke a window to gain entry and exited through a side door. The Detective Bureau is investigating the incident.
Burglary to Garage / Theft
A Woodland Place resident reported that sometime between 6:00 am, Thursday 10-09-14 and 12:45, Friday 10-10-14, actor(s) unknown entered the garage of his residence and removed his red Citizen Miami folding bicycle. The incident is under investigation.
Theft
A Warwick Avenue resident reported that sometime between midnight and 6:00 am on Sunday, 10-12-14 actor(s) unknown stole two Trek bicycles from her backyard. One is a large blue bicycle and the other is a medium sized black and red bicycle.
Burglary to Auto
At approximately 6:15 am on Sunday, 10-12-14, a Clark Street resident observed a man inside his vehicle (2006 Honda), which was parked in front of his residence. The victim described the actor as a an older black male wearing dark clothing and a cap. The actor was carrying a draw string bag and was in possession of a bicycle. SOPD officers immediately responded to the scene and pursued the actor on foot. SOPD units were able to recover the bicycle and bag (which appeared to contain proceeds from another incident), however officers were unable to locate the actor. It does not appear that anything was taken from the victim’s vehicle. The incident is under investigation.
10/10/2014
DWI / CDS Arrest
SOPD officers arrested Benjamin Eliasaint, a 22 year old Maplewood resident for DWI and possession of CDS at approximately 11:55 pm on Thursday, 10-09-14. An SOPD officer observed a vehicle (2002 Subaru) driving at excessive speed on Grove Road and after initiating a motor vehicle stop for the offense, the officer suspected that the driver, Mr. Eliasaint was operating the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Further investigation at the scene confirmed the officer’s suspicion and Mr. Eliasaint was arrested for DWI. During the arrest, officers located a bag of green vegetation, later confirmed to be marijuana, in Mr. Eliasaint’s possession. Officers transported Mr. Eliasaint to police headquarters where he was charged accordingly.
Burglary to Garage / Theft
A Charlton Avenue resident reported that sometime between 6:45 pm Thursday, 10-09-14 and 6:55 am Friday, 10-10-14, actor(s) unknown entered the victim’s garage, rifled through the interior of two vehicles, which were parked inside and stole an unknown amount of loose change. It appears the actor(s) entered the garage through a side door and neither vehicle sustained any damage. The incident is under investigation.
Theft of Auto
A Radel Terrace resident reported that between the hours of 7:00 pm Wednesday, 10-08-14 and 7:20 am Thursday, 10-09-14, actor(s) unknown stole her vehicle (1997 Honda), which was parked in the driveway of her residence.
