During the period between June 5, 2023, through June 12, 2023, members of the GRPD handled 328 calls for service, the highlights of which included:
06-05-2023
12:41 PM – While on patrol, along Route 208 South, P.O. Sarah Orsita observed a vehicle operating on the highway with a fraudulent temporary registration affixed to the rear. Through her experience and training the officer recognized that the number sequence on the temporary registration was improper. Upon conducting a motor vehicle stop the officer spoke with the driver, a 31-year-old Paterson woman, who explained that she had purchased the vehicle a few months prior and had purchased the registration from a man she met on the street in Paterson for $200. The officer was able to determine that the vehicle was properly insured, and the title was listed to the driver, however, there was no associated registration.
The driver further explained that she was unable to get an appointment to properly register the vehicle with the NJ Motor Vehicle Commission until June 24th. As the initial temporary registration was to expire prior to that date she contacted the same man via Facebook and obtained a second temporary registration for another $200. The woman related to the officer that she was unaware that the temporary registrations were fraudulent.
The driver was issued a traffic summons for operating a vehicle with a fictitious registration and was allowed to make arrangements to have the vehicle towed from the scene. The matter has been referred to the Detective Bureau for further investigation.
06-06-2023
11:34 AM – Officers were dispatched to the parking lot of 175 Rock Road in response to a citizen’s report of a male subject selling fraudulent temporary New Jersey vehicle registrations. The sale had been advertised via Facebook.
Subsequent to an on-scene investigation, P.O. Andrew Magro arrested a 40-year-old Iselin man charging him with unlawfully selling fraudulent documents, a crime of the second degree. A total of six fraudulent temporary registrations were found to be in his possession. The actor was transported to police HQ where he was processed and then released on his own recognizance pending an appearance before Central Judicial Processing at the Superior Court in Hackensack, NJ.
The Glen Rock Police Detective Bureau currently has ongoing investigations in progress concerning the increase of abuses of temporary license plates which is becoming widespread in New Jersey. Drivers use fake and fraudulent temp tags for a variety of reasons, including driving without car insurance; avoiding sales tax on car purchases and bills for tolls and tickets; and committing more serious crimes in vehicles with license plates that aren’t connected to their name and address. Fake and fraudulent temp tags have been used during robberies, shootings, and hit-and-runs.
Anyone with information concerning fraudulent temporary vehicle registrations is asked to contact D/Sgt. James Calaski at (201) 670-3948 or [email protected].
More information can be found in this article
06-06-2023
1:23 PM – A Glen Rock resident reported that they had been defrauded of $ 2,493.32 as a result of a phone scam. The complainant related that they received a call from a purported Bank of America representative who convinced him to make two Zelle pay transfers from their account. The Detective Bureau is currently reviewing the matter.
06-08-2023
As a result of an investigation of two shoplifting incidents at the CVS Store on Rock Road, where $ 3,649.70 of cosmetics were taken from the store on May 19th and 24th, D/Sgt. James Calaski was able to identify and arrest two actors.
At 8:26 PM, with the assistance of officers from the Fair Lawn Police Department he arrested a 37-year-old Paterson woman on two counts of shoplifting in furtherance of a retail theft enterprise – a second-degree crime. The woman was processed at police HQ and released on her own recognizance pending an appearance before Central Judicial Processing at the Superior Court in Hackensack.
On the evening of June 9th, D/Sgt. Calaski apprehended her male accomplice on E. 18th Street in Paterson. The actor, a 42-year-old Elmwood Park man was also charged with two counts of shoplifting in furtherance of a retail theft enterprise – a second-degree crime. In addition, he was charged with Possession of Cocaine. He was processed at police HQ and then transported to the Bergen County Jail pending an appearance before Central Judicial Processing at the Superior Court in Hackensack.
New Jersey’s Shoplifting Law imposes enhanced penalties for those who shoplift as part of an “organized retail theft enterprise”. Organized shoplifting is a serious problem at retail stores across the nation, resulting in higher prices for consumers. There is a concerted effort by law enforcement to track these organizations, which sell the stolen merchandise on the black market, flea markets and online.
06-09-2023
1:23 PM – A Glen Rock resident reported that they left a grey Schwinn bicycle, valued at $300, in the area of the bike rack at the Bergen Line Train Station near Borough Hall. The resident had left the bike there around 7:40 AM without locking it. When they returned around 5:30 PM it was missing.
06-11-2023
1:52 AM – During the course of a motor vehicle stop on Lincoln Avenue, Sgt. Greg Carter arrested a 36-year-old Paterson man on drug charges and for possession of counterfeit US currency. The man was also found to have an active warrant for his arrest issued by the Riverdale Municipal Court.
The subject was transported to police HQ where he was charged with two counts of possession of a controlled dangerous substance – Alprazolam. One count of possession of a controlled dangerous substance – Oxycodone. One count of possession of prescription drugs not in original container. One count of possession of $ 1,020 in counterfeit US currency. He was also issued traffic summonses for operating an unregistered vehicle, driving with a suspended driver’s license, operating a vehicle with fictitious plates, operation of a vehicle while in possession of narcotics, failure to possess a driver’s license, and failure to maintain lamps. He was then transported to the Bergen County Jail pending an appearance before Central Judicial Processing at the Superior Court in Hackensack.
