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Detectives attached a GPS tracker to a decoy bicycle before racking it at the NJ TRANSIT Bergen Line station, Police Chief Dean Ackermann said.
It was around 4:30 p.m. this past Friday, Oct. 27, when the "bait bike" was removed from the rack, he said.
Police immediately headed toward the train station. The thief, meanwhile, found and removed the GPS tracker as he headed south on Lincoln Avenue, the chief said.
Just when it looked like he might get away, along came Glen Rock Fire Chief/ OEM Coordinator Tom Jennings.
Jennings, who'd heard the police radio chatter about the incident, spotted the suspect, Ackermann said. He followed the thief at a safe distance into Paterson, updating officers as he went, the police chief said.
Officer T.J. Graziani quickly caught up to them at River Street and 5th Avenue and seized Jaime Bauer of Waldwick, a 35-year-old habitual offender known to police in Northwest Bergen and Passaic counties, Ackermann said.
Lt. Frank Riggio, Sgt. Rob Wojtecki, and Officer James Donnelly assisted, he said.
Police brought Bauer and the bike to headquarters, processed him on theft charges and sent him to the Bergen County Jail. Bauer remained there on Monday.
It was the third time in the past month that Bauer's been arrested in the area.
Ho-Ho-Ho Kus police arrested him on theft charges last Monday, Oct. 23. A judge then ordered Bauer released from the county jail within hours of his arrival under New Jersey's bail reform law, records show.
SEE: Beneficiary Of NJ Bail Reform: Meet Jaime Bauer
Glen Rock detectives are reviewing video footage from other recent train station bicycle thefts to determine whether Bauer was responsible, Ackermann said.
A half-dozen or so bicycles had been stolen from both Glen Rock train stations in recent weeks, two of which the chief said are worth a combined $1,800. All of the thefts occurred during off hours, "when there is little activity at the station,” Ackermann said.
Four of the bicycles had been locked in the rack at the NJ TRANSIT Bergen Line station near borough hall, their owners told police.
SEE: Rash Of Bike Thefts Reported At Both Glen Rock Train Stations
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