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Officers Brett Howard and Tony Pickens rolled up after a caller summoned them to the Shell station on westbound Route 4 Monday afternoon.
They found the group loaded containers full of gas into an Econoline van, Detective Capt. Stanley Zon said.
One of them yelled, “Cops!” and they all scattered in different directions, he said.
“Several ran into Route 4 traffic, climbing highway divider fences,” Zon said. “Others ran behind and up embankments attempting to flee onto a nearby road.”
Howard and Pickens “had their work cut out for them,” split up and caught four suspects, the captain said.
In the process, the officers spotted the defendants tossing forged and altered credit cards with different account numbers and names from their pockets into trash bins behind buildings, he said.
Backup officers joined the pair and found 40 full containers of gas in the van and others left partially filled at the pumps — clearly a hazardous and potentially lethal situation, Zon said.
Detectives determined that the defendants bought the gas with the bogus and stolen credit cards — several of which were also found in the van.
The New Jersey Stat Police Commercial Vehicle Unit was contacted “for assistance and follow-up,” Zon said.
Held on $25,000 bail each in the Bergen County Jail were Kimarley Myers, 22; Kemar Orane, 23; Von Bhoorasingh, 21, and Fabion Hendricks, 19.
They are various charged with credit card crimes, ID theft, hindering, receiving stolen property and possession of burglar tools.
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