Thomas Devingo
Quick action by Nutley PD was credited by Police Chief Tom Strumolo and Mayor/Police Commissioner Alphonse Petracco for the capture of an armed robbery suspect.
It happened on May 12, at about 10:15 a.m., when police were sent to a reported armed robbery in progress at the Delta gas station on Franklin Ave.
When they got there, the station attendant told officers that he was just robbed at knifepoint by a white male wearing a blue hooded New York Rangers sweatshirt who had fled just prior to their arrival.
Police quickly saturated the area and developed information tracking the suspect to a nearby apartment complex where, in a yard, they found a discarded sweatshirt matching the description given by the attendant.
Inside an apartment, police arrested Thomas Devingo, 57, of Nutley, on an armed robbery charge. Police said they found a knife, believed to have been used in the crime, along with the proceeds from the robbery.
According to Strumolo, police learned that Devingo was also wanted by Newark PD in connection with an armed carjacking he allegedly committed in that city.
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In an unrelated incident, on May 1, Nutley PD responded to a Ravine Ave. location on a report of a possible overdose.
At the scene, officers found a 22-year-old man unconscious and unresponsive in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle and were advised by a bystander that the man was reportedly under the influence of heroin.
Officers Mark DeLitta, Andrew Bassett, Matthew Murphy, Nicholas Albanese and Joseph Bigg, with Sgt. Jeffrey Polewka, were involved in using a Narcan kit to help save the man’s life, said Police Chief Tom Strumolo.
It marked the second time this year that Nutley PD have deployed Narcan to revive someone from an apparent drug overdose.
Petracco said the service performed by the officers was the result of the department “properly equipping and training our police and providing them with the necessary tools to help enable them to protect our residents.”
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Between May 9 and 15, Nutley PD responded to 15 motor vehicle accidents, 45 medical calls, 15 disputes and these incidents:
May 9
A female driving a black 4-door Mercury pulled into a Kingsland Ave. gas station and asked the attendant to fill the tank, saying she would pay in cash. But after the attendant pumped $38 worth of fuel, the driver provided a credit card for payment which was declined. The driver then drove away without paying. Police later learned that the credit card’s owner had reported it stolen.
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Sidney Kimbrough, 44, of Belleville, was pulled over while driving on Rt. 21 and arrested on the charge of driving while suspended. Police said he was also wanted on three warrants from Belleville, one from Lyndhurst and one from Kearny. Belleville PD was contacted to take custody of the driver.
May 11
A fraud victim told police that someone made about $230 in unauthorized charges on their credit card account at a Nutley pharmacy.
May 12
A Franklin Ave. resident reported the theft of two vehicles from their parking spaces while the resident had been away for an extended time.
May 13
A Centre St. homeowner told police someone had damaged their patio furniture during the night. Police found a picnic table on its side, a picnic umbrella snapped in half and a ceramic planter shattered on the deck. Police speculated that strong winds that night may have caused the damage but the owner told them their vehicle had been keyed in Secaucus several weeks prior.
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A Franklin Ave. tenant reported two cellular phones, valued at $100 each, stolen from their apartment.
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Police detained a male walking near Park and Washington Aves. carrying a bag filled with several bottles of cold medicine for which he reportedly could not produce a receipt. The individual admitted an addiction to tussin and reportedly told officers he had stolen three bottles of pills from two pharmacies in Belleville. Nutley PD arranged to have Belleville PD take custody of him.
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Marilyn Colorado, 43, and Joseph Tomiak, 68, both of Nutley, were arrested after police said they witnessed a suspected drug transaction involving three individuals at Chestnut St. and Franklin Ave. Police said one person had eight small glassine envelopes – which later tested positive for heroin – with the letters “NBA” stamped on them. Police said a search incident to arrest of Colorado and Tomiak yielded a small cylindricallyshaped pipe commonly used to smoke crack cocaine. Colorado, who had an active warrant from Nutley, was charged with possession of CDS/heroin and drug paraphernalia. Tomiak, who had several warrants from Nutley, Fort Lee and Newark, was charged with possession of CDS/heroin. Both were taken to Essex County Jail after failing to post bail.
May 14
Police were sent to a location on Rt. 21 North on a report of two juveniles walking on the highway. Police spotted two boys in the woods just north of the Park Ave. entrance ramp. The boys, who told police they were walking to Willowbrook Mall, were taken to HQ where police learned they were AWOL from their Child Protective Services placement location. They were taken by a state agency to a hospital for evaluation.
– Ron Leir
