Serial Package Thief Caught In Act Again: East Rutherford PD

A serial porch pirate from East Rutherford who'd been busted before for stealing packages from fellow borough residents was at it again, police said.

Jerry DeMarco

08/18/2023 11:06 a.m.

Home surveillance cameras caught images of Anthony Mendoza, 42, pirating packages from porches on June 13 and Aug. 5, East Rutherford Police Capt. Jeff Yannacone said.

Detective Sgts. Robert Applegate and Charles Kryzsiak identified Mendoza, who has a drug-related criminal history -- and who the captain said "has been charged numerous times in the past for the same crime."

In one incident, Mendoza swiped packages from a Rutherford resident’s home, then fled out the window of an NJ Transit bus in Passaic before police captured him.

SEE: GOTCHA! Rutherford, New Milford Porch Pirate Flees Out Bus Window, Captured, Police Say

This came after police charged Mendoza with stealing packages from 10 different addresses in New Milford.

SEE: Porch Pirate Tied To More Than Dozen Thefts In New Milford, Bergenfield, Wyckoff

Arrested on Thursday, Aug. 17, Mendoza remained held in the Bergen County Jail on Friday pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack on two counts of package theft.

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