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Officers Brian Dench and Michael Gil responded to a call of a suspicious vehicle outside a house for sale on Valley Stream Lane late last Friday and found the couple in a black Dodge Charger with Virginia license plates, Police Chief Christopher Minchin said.
The driver, 34-year-old Jonathan Trow of Ballston Lake, NY, had a "Black and Mild" cigar on his lap, and the car reeked of burnt and draw pot, he said.
As backups arrived, police discovered the cash, believed taken during burglaries in Fulton County and Waterford, NY, the chief said.
They also recovered "several hundred to possibly thousands of dollars worth of coins" that were also possibly stolen, he said.
This was in addition to small amounts of marijuana and drug paraphernalia that Michin said Trow and his passenger, Stefanie Morris, 33, were carrying.
The officers also found a wallet stolen during a burglary and contacted the victim -- which ended up being the big break in the case, Minchin said.
Morris, of Scotia, NY, posted $25,000 bail hours later and was released from the Bergen County Jail.
Trow, who was wanted on a warrant out of Fulton County, remained held on $50,000 bail Friday.
Both were charged with receiving stolen property and received drug-offense summonses.
The chief praised Dench and Gil, as well as the other officers who participated in the case -- among them, Ho-Ho-Kus Detective Greg McBain and Sgt. Jaime Bodart and Saddle River Officer Michael Cooper.
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