Two suspected shoplifters are behind bars now thanks to the quick work of the Lyndhurst Police Department.
According to Det. Capt. Vincent Auteri, of the Lyndhurst PD:
On Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at approximately 8:15 p.m., officers from the Lyndhurst Police Department responded to a report of a shoplifting in progress at TJ Maxx on Valley Brook Avenue.
A member of the store’s loss-prevention unit observed two men removing anti-theft devices from merchandise.
The loss-prevention officer was able to provide a description of one suspect, identified as a Latino man wearing a black shirt and a red hat. Officers Michael D’Alessandro and Vincent DiNicola quickly located the suspect outside a nearby business on the 400 block of Valley Brook Avenue. The man initially gave cops a false name and date of birth, but was later positively identified as Alexander Peguero, 32, of Bayonne.
During the investigation, Officer Robert Litterio observed a woman acting suspiciously while entering and exiting a white Buick Encore parked nearby. The woman, identified as Tanya Prouflias, 55, of Jersey City, was the registered owner of the vehicle. Upon speaking with Prouflias, she told police she had driven Peguero and another individual to TJ Maxx.
While standing outside the vehicle, officers observed in plain view a glass pipe with burnt residue and a small plastic bag with suspected cocaine residue in the driver’s side door compartment. The contraband was confirmed after Prouflias admitted the narcotics belonged to Peguero and she had brought him to the location to shoplift.
Prouflias was then placed under arrest.
A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed six Michael Kors handbags, a pair of Puma sneakers and a pair of Reebok sneakers. All of the items were bearing TJ Maxx tags and antitheft devices, with a retail value of $859.93.
Peguero, who matched the suspect description and was in possession of the vehicle keys, was also placed under arrest. During a search of his person, officers located a Visa debit card in a different name.
A third suspect, described only as a white or Latino man, dressed in all black with a red hood, fled the scene prior to police arrival and remains at large.
Prouflias was charged with theft, possession of drug paraphernalia and conspiracy to commit shoplifting.
Peguero was charged with hindering apprehension and conspiracy to commit shoplifting.
Both suspects were remanded to the Bergen County Jail, Hackensack.
The vehicle was impounded as part of the ongoing investigation.
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.