Another diversion burglary hits Nutley

NUTLEY —

Police here are warning of yet another diversion burglary.

Police Director Alphonse Petracco and Chief Thomas Strumolo said on Feb. 17, at around 11 a.m., a Mountainview Ave. resident reported that two men came to her home claiming they needed to enter because of a water-related issue

Once the alleged burglars were allowed inside, one led the victim to her basement and caused her to be distracted by running water, while the accomplice entered the home and stole valuables from the master bedroom, the NPD said.

Police described the suspects as follows:

• Suspect 1Tall thin man, approximately 20 to 30fair skin with beard.

• Suspect 2: An older, heavyset man in his 50s, with grey beard.

A vehicle believed to have been used in the burglary was a newer-model, silver or grey, 4door Chevy Silverado pickup.

Petracco said Clifton, Bloomfield and Caldwell all had similar incidents recently and he believe the suspects are the same in all the diversion burglaries.

Chief Strumolo, meanwhile, reminded residents this isn’t the first diversion burglary in the township.

“We had a similar diversion burglary on Union Ave. in January, and another on Feb. 2, on Bloomfield Ave,” the chief said. “They are often creative with their need to enter, and add a sense of urgency. Our detectives are investigating with Bloomfield police.

Residents are reminded to never allow anyone into their home or provide personal information. If someone comes to your home and requests to enter, have them wait and call police.

Anyone with information on any of the burglaries should contact the NPD at 973-284-4940 or text CRIMES and start your anonymous message with NPDTIP. Or, log onto www.tipsoft.com and submit a tip to Nutley police.

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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, a place where he has served on and off since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on Facebook Live, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to West Hudson to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.