Two out-of-towners found out the hard way — committing crime in North Arlington never ends well.
Such was the case in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025, as the North Arlington Police Department apprehended Lewins Carmona, 19, of the Bronx and Stavin Alvarado Rodriguez, 25, of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, who were caught in the act of attempting to steal mail from a blue US Postal Service mailbox near the North Arlington Post Office.
According to NAPD Lt. David Hudak:
The arrests were the result of an ongoing investigation into a series of mail thefts that had been plaguing the area since July 2025. Detectives had been working closely with the United States Postal Service to monitor the site, using surveillance technology that provided a live feed directly to police dispatch.
At approximately 4 a.m., Oct. 29, dispatchers observed two individuals engaging in suspicious activity at the mailbox and immediately alerted patrol officers, who responded within moments.
Responding officers quickly located both suspects near the scene and detained them without incident. A leather belt coated in an adhesive substance and a metal plate — tools commonly used in “mail fishing” thefts — were recovered nearby. Officers also seized several cell phones, a set of vehicle keys and other items of evidential value.
Further investigation revealed the suspects had arrived at the scene in a white BMW sedan, which was located nearby and confirmed to be connected to the pair. Inside the vehicle, officers found a loaded handgun, ammunition and additional materials consistent with mail theft activity. Several of the recovered phones are believed to contain evidence linking the suspects to other thefts.
The suspects were charged with conspiracy to commit forgery, attempted theft of identifying information, conspiracy to commit theft of personal identifying information, possession of burglary tools and unlawful possession of a handgun.
Both suspects were remanded to the Bergen County Jail, Hackensack.
“This was an excellent example of proactive policing and coordinated teamwork,” Lt. David Hudak, of the North Arlington Police Department, said. “From our dispatchers who observed the crime in real time, to the officers and detectives who worked swiftly through the morning, everyone played a critical role. It’s gratifying to see their diligence result in the apprehension of two suspects and the recovery of a firearm before anyone was harmed.”
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served 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 social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, 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 Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.