By: Najla Alexander
Authorities in Essex County announced the arrest of a suspect in an armed home invasion as well as a string of home burglaries and car thefts.
Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II stated that investigators allege that 25-year-old Alquan A. Harris and another individual carried out the thefts throughout Bergen, Essex, Morris, and Passaic counties, including an armed home invasion in West Caldwell on April 9.
Harris is charged with several counts of burglary, attempted burglary, and motor vehicle theft, according to Essex County officials.
ECPO authorities said that a joint investigation led by the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations in cooperation with investigators from East Orange, Essex Fells, Cedar Grove, Roseland, Verona, Millburn, West Caldwell, Livingston, Montclair, Newark, Summit, and Ridgewood Police Departments resulted in Harris’s arrest.
“HSI is proud to partner with the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and the various police agencies involved in this investigation to bring this individual to justice and continue to thwart criminal activity in the State of New Jersey,” said Ricky J. Patel, Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New Jersey.
“Home burglaries, armed home invasions, and vehicle thefts are not just property crimes. They are serious crimes that threaten the safety and peace of our communities”, said Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II.