March 23
After getting off a bus, a Nutley resident was walking on Park Ave. near River Road at 12:39 a.m. when he was assaulted by three people and robbed of money and a cellular phone.
March 22
A burglar got into a Coyeman Ave. residence, sometime between 5 and 8:23 p.m., by shattering a rear glass door and removed undisclosed items from the house. Detectives are also investigating an attempted burglary, reported at the same time, at a Margaret Ave. home where someone broke the glass in the rear door while muffling the sound with a drop cloth. Nutley Police and the Essex County Sheriff’s K-9 unit attempted to track a scent detected at the Margaret Ave. location.
A teen attending track practice at DeMuro Park reported that someone stole his cellular phone, valued at more than $400, from an unsecured locker at that location. The theft was reported at 5:42 p.m.
Rhett Ellis, 47, of East Orange, was arrested at 4:40 p.m. at a Harrison St. business where Ellis was found to be concealing hair products without paying for them. Ellis was ticketed for shoplifting and possession of drugs and released pending a court appearance.
Police pulled over a vehicle operated by Angel Mendez, 39 of East Orange for a traffic stop on E. Passaic Ave. at 11:25 a.m. and discovered he had outstanding warrants totaling more than $1,500 from Union City, Bloomfield and Newark. Police said Mendez tried to avoid arresting officers. He was charged with resisting arrest and eluding and was detained on $500 Nutley bail pending payment.
March 21
A mother got separated from her 9-year-old child at a Passaic Ave. convenience store at 7:49 p.m. but officers managed to find the missing youngster walking a block away. Police said the child, who was confused and frightened, was reunited with the mother.
Aika Chaudhary, 35, of Nutley, was in Nutley Municipal Court at 11:32 a.m. when an alert police officer recognized her as someone who was wanted by the Morris County Sheriff’s Department. She was taken into custody and turned over to Morris County authorities.
March 20
At 8:37 p.m. police arrested Robert Christian, 45, of Belleville, on a theft charge as he was about to get into a car outside a Franklin Ave. business. Management identified Christian as the individual who took items from the shop without paying. Police recovered all the merchandise. After giving officers a false identity, Christian was also charged with hindering apprehension. Police learned that Christian had several outstanding warrants: $325 from Newark, $500 from Linden and $658 from Springfield. He was turned over to Linden Police.
Police were called to a private school on Park Ave. at 7:03 p.m. to mediate a dispute. Police calmed the people quarreling and advised them of their right to sign complaints.
March 19
A Milton Ave. resident called police at 3:09 p.m. to report that someone had entered the resident’s vehicle and removed a number of items.
A vandal slashed the front tire of a Harrison St. resident’s vehicle while it was parked on Monsignor Deluca Place. The incident was logged in at 11:03 a.m.
A frantic Linn Road resident called police at 10:55 a.m. to report her two-year-old child missing. When officers arrived, they found the mother running down Craig Place in search of the toddler who, police quickly discovered, was hiding inside the resident’s home.
Someone damaged cement bags and discharged three fire extinguishers inside a Washington Ave. business, the owner told police at 7:30 a.m.
March 18
An arrest resulted from a motor vehicle accident on Rt. 21 at 6:15 a.m. in which one car was spun around. A bystander told police that a man involved in the accident claimed he didn’t have a driver’s license and was trying to flee. Disregarding a police order to halt, that man leaped over a barrier and continued running. But police managed to track down the man, identified as Todd Goodwin, 23, of Paterson, bleeding from the nose and lip, walking along River Road. He denied being in the accident but officers found that he had keys that fit the vehicle left behind at the accident scene. He was a relative of the car’s registered owner, police said. Goodwin was provided medical treatment and was charged with obstruction, leaving the scene of an accident and other charges.
A speeding motorist was stopped on Rt. 21 at 4 a.m. and ticketed for the violation. Police didn’t release the driver’s name.
March 17
An out-of-state motorist with a suspended license was traveling in excess of 100 mph on Rt. 21 at 1:09 a.m. when stopped by police. Randy Debblay, 22, of Norristown, Pa., was charged with driving with suspended licenses issued by Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Debblay also had an outstanding warrant for $1,000 from Burlington City. He was released after posting the required bail.
March 16
A juvenile on Franklin Ave. was taken into custody at 10:41 p.m. after Manalapan Police alerted Nutley authorities that the girl was in Nutley without parental consent. The girl was turned over to her parents’ custody without incident.
Police were called to a Kingsland Ave. gas station at 3:49 p.m. to intervene in a dispute between an attendant and a customer who said he asked for only $15 worth of gas but was given $25.
Police are investigating a burglary of a maintenance room at a Hillside Ave. apartment complex, reported at 9:25 a.m., resulting in the disappearance of power tools. It was the second burglary reported over the past few weeks.
Ridge Road resident Steven Cappiello, 41, was informed by police of several outstanding warrants pending against him. He was taken to headquarters where he posted the required $1,725 and was released pending court hearings in Livingston, Kinnelon and Lyndhurst.
