Alleged Shoplifters Caught in Hillside Shed

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Verona police apprehended an adult couple today who had reportedly stolen high-end pocketbooks from a store in Livingston, after they found them hiding in a shed on the property of a Hillside Avenue home.

According to Police Chief Doug Huber, Verona police picked up a radio call from the Livingston police suggesting that the suspects might be heading south on Pleasant Valley Way in a small white car, possibly a Pontiac. Soon after, the police noticed a car fitting that description on the lawn of the Oser home at 5 Morningside Road. After searching the vicinity on foot for about fifteen or twenty minutes, the unarmed suspects were discovered  in the shed on Hillside.

According to Huber, the couple, who had the pocketbooks with them, will be charged by Verona authorities with burglary and possession of stolen property. They had broken into the shed after trying the doors of several homes in the neighborhood. Residents who had seen them trying to enter homes had called the police, aiding the search.

Police officers from neighboring towns such as West Orange and Essex Fells were also on hand to help, canvassing the neighborhood and Verona Park, just across the street. Children out enjoying the snow day were asked if they’d seen the suspects, one of whom had orange hair.

Though plowing through the foot-plus of white stuff in backyards did slow the officers down, tracks in the snow ultimately helped lead them to the  suspects’ hideout.  “The officers did a great job,” says Huber. “And the snow was a big help.”