Two teens were accused Tuesday of stealing a car in Newark and then ditching it Montclair to swipe another vehicle from a home they had just burglarized, police said.
Authorities said a robust investigation led to the arrests of the two teenagers, beginning at 5:45 a.m. on Tuesday when the Newark Police Department advised officers in Montclair that they tracked a vehicle stolen in the city to a home on Highland Avenue, according to a release from the Montclair Police Department.
Officers went to the area and found a running, unoccupied 2019 Mercedes GLC there and recovered the stolen vehicle, the department said.
While on the scene, detectives in Newark contacted them to let them know an officer in the city saw a speeding 2023 Audi SQ8 that was registered to an address on Highland Avenue in Montclair, investigators said. The Audi was not reported stolen.
The Montclair officers went to the address and found the home and been burglarized. The homeowner was contacted and told police that he was out of the country, authorities said.
He checked his surveillance and confirmed to police that two males used a crowbar to lift a window at 4:59 a.m., entered his home, stole keys to the Audi and drove off with the car, “likely leaving the Mercedes behind,” according to the release.
The New Jersey State Police were contacted and detectives were able to track the Audi. It was eventually located by state troopers at 1:30 p.m. at the Vince Lombardi rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike in Ridgefield, police said.
Five people were found with the car and after a brief foot chase they were taken into custody, the department said. The five, who were not identified, were are all resident burglary and repeat motor vehicle theft offenders.
Montclair detectives interviewed the suspects and as a result, two of them, a 16-year-old and a 17-year-old, were charged with burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, motor vehicle theft and conspiracy to commit motor vehicle theft for the burglary on Highland Avenue, authorities said.
“This is an exceptional example of interagency cooperation resulting in the arrests of five recidivist offenders just hours after the residential burglary and motor vehicle theft,” Montclair Police Chief Todd Conforti said in a statement.
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Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com.
