One of the bandits had opened the door to his vehicle and was climbing in when the owner came out around 8 p.m. Sunday, Detective Lt. Ronald F Waldt said.
The thief hopped into a waiting white sedan with tinted windows that then sped off, the lieutenant said.
The caller pursued the getaway car, giving a police dispatcher the license plate number as he drove, Waldt said.
Fort Lee police headed the bandits off at the bridge, seizing the quartet for their Englewood Cliffs colleagues, he said. They had an item stolen from the victim's vehicle with them, the lieutenant noted.
Furad N Fleming, 24, and Lamarr S Burwell Jr, 27, both of Newark, and Alquan Ryanes, 25, of Union, were charged with burglary, theft and receiving stolen property and sent to the Bergen County Jail, where they remained Tuesday awaiting first appearances in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack.
A fourth defendant, Alsamad Hodges, 23, of Hillsborough was given a summons with a court date before being released.
Waldt thanked police from Fort Lee, as well as their Port Authority colleagues who also responded.
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