A young Nutley man has been arrested as the suspected intruder who surprised an elderly woman in her apartment on Oct. 7.
At 3:48 p.m., Nutley PD responded to the Senior Housing building on William St. on a report of an unknown man in a woman’s apartment.
Police said the 93-year-old tenant told them that when she entered her fourth-floor apartment, she was confronted by a white male in his early 20s who handed her a candy bar and fled.
After reviewing video surveillance at the scene, police determined that the man had entered the building, while trailing an unsuspecting resident, then proceeded to the fourth floor apartment.
Two days later, police arrested Stephen Nemec, 21, of Nutley, on a burglary charge. The suspect told police he was looking for a friend who lives on the fourth floor and accidentally entered the woman’s apartment.
Police said Nemec admitted following a resident into the building that requires a key to access.
Nemec was taken to the Essex County Jail after failing to post 10% of his $25,000 bail.
In addition to 37 medical calls and 13 motor vehicle accidents, police also responded to the above incident and others, listed below, during the past week:
Oct. 4
Someone entered an auto parked on Oak St. and rummaged through the interior, taking several items, the owner told police. Police said there was no sign of forced entry.
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Two separate fraud incidents were reported to police. A Rhoda Ave. resident said that someone had opened an American Express account using her identity and made a $200 charge on the account for which she is being held responsible. A Washington Ave. resident told police that MoneyLoan.com had notified them they were approved for a $3,000 loan and, after calling to cancel, someone kept hanging up on them, until, finally, someone answered and said they’d cancel the plan for a fee of $69 which the victim sent. Police said MoneyLoan. com is a site name for sale.
Oct. 5
Someone broke into a Race St. garage by removing the lower part of the rear side window and stole several tools, police said. The victim noticed a tool case on the ground and realized several of the tools were missing.
Oct. 6
Someone burglarized an auto parked on Highland Ave. and removed the owner’s black leather wallet with a bank debit card and driver’s license, along with a $120 Panasonic subwoofer, (which police said they later recovered from a Bloomfield arrest). The owner told police he had trouble locking the vehicle’s driver’s side door following an accident.
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While conducting a motor vehicle checkpoint on Franklin Ave., police said they observed a white Nissan Pathfinder with an expired/rejected inspection sticker whose driver, Darneil D. Morgan, 20, of Paterson, had an active warrant from Woodland Park. Morgan was released after getting a new court date in Woodland Park.
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A Grant Ave. resident reported an attempted fraud after getting a call from a man who identified himself as a “Kevin Brown from the IRS” who claimed the resident owed $3,247 in back taxes from 2010- 2011 and told the resident to pay that amount in cash within the hour or face arrest.
Oct. 7
An unlocked car parked on Ohlson Ave. was entered and its rear seat contents, along with the glove box, were ransacked, the owner told police.
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A Cathedral Ave. resident came to HQ to report a fraud. They said their bank froze their compromised checking account and opened a new one and issued a new checkbook. Then, the resident said, someone claiming to be “Tina” with the bank told them that in order to open a new checking account, they needed to make a cash deposit of $5,000 and that a courier would be sent to their home to collect the money. The resident said that a woman, about 5-feet-four, who said she was “Ms. Walls” came to their home and collected $4,000 in cash in $100 bills. Police contacted a bank representative who told them that the bank would never send a representative to a client’s home to pick up cash. Detectives are investigating.
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A Chestnut St. resident called police to complaint that ivy being grown by a neighbor near a retaining wall that separates both properties had spread across their entire backyard, including both sides of their residence. Police advised them they can remove any ivy on their property.
Oct. 8
Police responded to a Franklin Ave. location on a report of someone driving a maroon Chevrolet Suburban in an erratic manner. After stopping the vehicle, police said they spotted a hypodermic needle and several envelopes that the driver was allegedly trying to hide between her legs. Police said the driver, Stephanie Jankin, 24, of Nutley, was combative and refused to comply with officers’ orders. Jankin was arrested on charges of possession of suspected heroin, possession of hypodermic needle, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest and was also ticketed for alleged violations of operating a motor vehicle while in possession of CDS and maintenance of lamps. After failing to post $5,000 bail with no 10% cash option, Jankin was taken to the Essex County Jail.
– Ron Leir
