Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrest of Dustin Van Riper, 22, of Old Tappan, on charges of Attempted Armed Burglary, Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose, and Resisting Arrest in Old Tappan, as well as Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose and Resisting Arrest in Westwood.
The arrest is the result of an investigation that started on Dec. 7th after the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office received information that Van Riper attempted to break into a residence in Old Tappan and then fled the scene after police arrived at the scene.
Officials say Van Riper was located in the backyard of 201 Mill Street, in Westwood, holding a weapon. When officers from the Westwood Police Department approached Van Riper, he disregarded their instructions to drop the weapon. A Westwood Police Officer fired one shot from the officer’s service weapon in the direction of Van Riper .
According to authorities, Van Riper Vwas not struck by the gunshot, he immediately dropped the weapon and was placed under arrest.
As a result of the investigation, Van Riper was arrested on December 7th, by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and charged with the following offenses for conduct that occurred in Old Tappan:
One count of Attempted Armed Burglary, a 2nd-degree crime and one count of Possession of a Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose
For conduct that occurred in Westwood, Van Riper was charged with one count of Possession Of A Weapon For An Unlawful Purpose.