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They also couldn’t name the friend whom they’d supposedly come to the area to visit, Police Chief Michael Foligno said.
Two of them ended up in custody.
A resident alerted police to the outsiders apparently burglarizing vehicles on Falmouth Avenue near Mola Boulevard around 1 a.m. Feb. 24, Foligno said.
Moments later, Officer Kenneth McKinney stopped a 2006 Honda Pilot that fit the description of the getaway car near East 54th Street and 14th Avenue.
The driver, 20-year-old Abdul Din-Gabisi, said they’d just come from a friend’s house nearby, the chief said, but he didn’t have an address or even the name of the purported person.
Passengers Isaiah Drouet, 19, and a 17-year-old boy “had their hoods over their heads, not making any eye contact,” he added.
McKinney also spotted a ski mask on Din-Gabisi’s lap, Foligno said.
Backup units arrived and the trio was removed from the Pilot.
In plain view, Officer Joseph Quinn found a pile of mail coming back to different addresses and names from Elmwood Park -- specifically on Falmouth Avenue, where the initial call originated, the chief said.
All three occupants said they didn’t know whom the mail belonged to or how it ended up in their vehicle, he said. Nor did they have any information on a black leather purse, slippers and other belongings that were found.
Din-Gabisi was arrested and charged with receiving stolen property. The juvenile was detained on a juvenile complaint charging him with the same offense, as well as with having brass knuckles.
Both were then released pending court dates.
Police obtained a Ring video showing the juvenile approaching and opening what turned out to be a resident’s empty mailbox.
Elmwood Park detectives are continuing an investigation in conjunction with neighboring jurisdictions and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
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