Two Who Stole from NJ Fire Station 'Cooperating' with Police
By Bill Duhart
Source NJ Advance Media Group, Edison, N.J.
Two of four men wanted for a late-night romp through a Rahway firehouse while firefighters were responding to a blaze turned themselves into police Friday and were “cooperating” with authorities, a police captain said.
Two others allegedly involved in the incident had not been rounded up as of 6:30 p.m. Friday, said Rahway Police Capt. Dawn Rodger.
Rodger said the pair who surrendered, came in after social media posts were published Friday with surveillance video footage of all four men. Some personal items, including a jacket of one of the firefighters was returned by one of the men but it was not immediately reported if other items, including a wallet with cash and credit and debit cards, had also been returned.
“The person who took the jacket is not the person who returned the jacket,” Rodger said. “We are still trying to identify the other two.”
Police corrected an initial report which said an unauthorized gasoline purchase had been made with one of the missing cards. It was not, Rodger said Friday evening.
“All else being equal, had it not unfolded the way it did with someone’s jacket being taken and personal items, you could have chunked it up to youthful indiscretion," she said. "Unfortunately it took a different turn.”
The quartet entered through an open door shortly after 3 a.m. and allegedly rummaged through the offices and building and left before emergency personnel returned from the call, police said.
One of the men was captured on video taking one of the firefighter’s jackets, which held his keys, wallet, cash and credit cards.
“One could speculate that alcohol may have been involved, but It’s merely speculation at this point,” Rodger said.
One of the men was recorded pointing at the surveillance camera while the other three looked on in the same direction.
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