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The driver hit the gas and fled when Clifton police tried to stop the 2019 Mazda CX-9, reported stolen out of Elmwood Park, on Lexington Avenue in Passaic around 1:15 a.m. Sunday, Clifton Police Lt. Robert Bracken said.
A pursuit continued through the streets of Passaic, onto Route 21 and then onto eastbound Route 46, he said.
The driver lost control of the vehicle in Teterboro, where it struck a grass embankment and landed in a stream, Bracken said.
The driver -- identified as Jordan Sarmiento, 18, of Passaic -- ran into a wooded area near the airport while his three passengers tried escaping through a stream, the lieutenant said.
Moonachie and Port Authority police converged on the area, along with a Bergen County Sheriff's K-9 Unit, leading to the capture of all four, he said.
Inside the vehicle were burglary proceeds from towns as far south as Perth Amboy, Bracken said.
Sarmiento was charged with receiving stolen property, possession of stolen credit cards, resisting arrest and weapons possession (a dagger), among other counts. He was sent to the Passaic County Jail to await a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court.
His three passengers -- two girls, 15 and 17 years old, and a boy, 15 -- were issued delinquency complaints charging them with similar offenses and released to parents or guardians pending hearings in the Family Part of Superior Court.
Bracken reminded owners to lock their vehicles and take their key fobs no matter where they park or for how long.
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ALSO SEE: A potential tragedy was averted when a Wayne police officer grabbed an out-of-state driver as he reached toward a loaded gun on the floor of his car in the parking lot of a Route 46 hotel, authorities said.
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