KEARNY –
A Newark man, released from prison Oct. 31 after serving a sentence for a Kearny auto theft, was back in cuffs Nov. 23, arrested here for allegedly having stolen three more cars in the town in the interim, police reported.
You can credit the apprehension of William Hill, 46, to good police work.
Authorities said you can blame the ease of such thefts on drivers who, despite repeated public warnings, persist in leaving their cars running, unlocked and/or unattended, even “for just a few minutes.”
Last month, the KPD said, there were a series of incidents — involving driversexiting such cars to use an ATM, dash into a store, drop off their kids, etc. – in the area of Kearny and Johnston Aves., Kearny Ave. and Rose St., and Kearny and Wilson Aves.
Following a Nov. 21 crime, police obtained a security video with the likeness of a probable suspect entering a 2011 Nissan Sentra and distributed it department wide. On the morning of Nov. 23, Det. Sgt. Michael Gonzalez set up surveillance and, at 7 a.m., near a convenience store at Devon and Duke Sts., spotted Hill, who matched the description of the man caught on video, police said.
Hill was taken into custody and charged with three counts of burglary and threecounts of theft in connection with crimes committed Nov. 4, 19 and 21. He was being held on $75,000 bail.
Authorities said Hill has a history of 27 prior arrests, including convictions for theft, larceny, receiving stolen property, aggravated assault and resisting arrest.
They said he was incarcerated from Feb. 14, 2006, to May 31, 2010, and from Sept. 7, 2012, to Oct. 31, 2016 — the latter term in connection with a Kearny car theft.
