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Officers responding to calls from Evergreen at Clifton at Main Avenue and Felton Boulevard began checking local streets shortly before noon Saturday, May 13, Detective Lt. Robert Bracken said.
Sure enough, they spotted all four black-hooded suspects in the area of Brook and Dakota streets in Passaic. The teens, all from Elizabeth, apparently were carrying valuables stolen from vehicles at Evergreen that had been left unlocked.
Jayden Alzate, 19, and three juveniles -- 15, 16 and 17 -- were taken into custody, Bracken said.
Alzate was charged with employing a juvenile in the commission of a crime, along with vehicle burglary-related offenses, and sent to the Passaic County Jail, the lieutenant said.
The juveniles were issued delinquency complaints for related offenses and released to their parents and/or guardians pending closed-door hearings in the Family Part of Superior Court in Paterson.
Police patrol the streets, but they can't be everywhere. They urge citizens to lock their vehicles, take their fobs and dial 911 the second they see or hear something suspicious. Better it be nothing than some kids damaging your car and dumping it somewhere out of the area, they say.
Nobody "breaks into" a vehicle anymore. That's because they don't have to.
The young bandits come from Newark, Elizabeth and other cities in Essex and Union counties.
They prowl North Jersey neighborhoods -- sometimes in broad daylight -- testing vehicle door handles. If a vehicle is locked, they keep moving. If it’s not, they hop in.
They'll steal valuables -- which could also include the vehicle if the owner has left the fob inside or somewhere just inside a home.
Check out the following story:
Gone In 30 Seconds (VIDEO): Here's How Car Thieves Steal Unlocked Vehicles In Bergen, Elsewhere
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