By Matthew Mcgrath
Herald News
PASSAIC, NJ — Police nabbed a pair of suspected car burglars with the help of what they believe was a stolen GPS found in one man’s pocket, officials said.
Police got a call after 1 a.m. Wednesday reporting that two men were checking out cars on the city’s west side, said Detective Andy White, a department spokesman. Officers encountered a pair of 20-year-old men matching the caller’s description on Van Houten Avenue and questioned them.
Michael Ruggierio, of Belleville, was on a bicycle and approached the officers as he was instructed to do, and so did Marcus Cook, of Gregory Avenue in Passaic, White said. But Cook suddenly bolted on foot, prompting Ruggierio to drop his bike and flee. The officers ran each of them down.
A GPS found in the pocket of one of the men led police to a home on Benson Avenue where four cars had been burglarized, White said. Police pressed the home button on the device, which led them to the alleged crime scene. White would not say which man had the GPS.
Cook and Ruggierio were each charged with four counts of car burglary, three counts of theft, two counts of criminal mischief to a car and one count of justice obstruction. They are each being held in Passaic County Jail on $50,000 bail, White confirmed.
In addition to the GPS, police recovered an undisclosed sum of money and a car radio, White said.
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