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NJ Man Arrested for Franklin Township Bank Robbery

Franklin Township (Somerset)

By: Yuritza Arroyo

Somerset County officials announced the arrest of Mr. Ivan M. Baerga Jr., 46, South Brunswick, New Jersey, for a bank robbery that occurred in Franklin Township on the afternoon of Thursday, February 9.

According to Franklin Township Police, on Thursday, February 9, at approximately 2:49 p.m., officers received a call that a robbery had occurred at a bank located on Route 27 in the Township of Franklin.  

Police say it was reported that an unknown male entered the bank and passed a note to the bank teller demanding $5000.00 in cash.  

The bank teller ultimately turned over an undisclosed amount of money to the male based on his demands.  The suspect subsequently fled the store, and no injuries were reported.  

According to Police, officers and detectives responded to the scene along with detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Crime Scene Investigation Unit.    

Police say detectives were able to determine that the bank robber traveled by cab to the bank.  

Detectives quickly located the cab in North Brunswick and learned that the same individual had also taken the taxi from the bank and was still traveling in the cab with the cab driver.  

Detectives were successful in locating the bank robber, identified as Ivan Baerga, within a store on Route 1 in North Brunswick.  

Mr. Baerga was taken into custody without incident, along with proceeds from the bank robbery, which were recovered from Defendant Baerga.  

Prosecutor McDonald stated as a result of this investigation, Defendant Baerga was charged with 2nd-degree Robbery and was lodged in the Somerset County Jail pending a detention hearing in this matter. 

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