Hillsdale NJ Men Report Burglary, Later Find Themselves Under Arrest for Burglary
Two Hillsdale NJ men reported a burglary of their apartment, only to find themselves arrested for burglary.
20-year-old James Fogarty and 24-year-old Michael Mascaro went to Hillsdale Police Department headquarters to report a break-in at their Park Avenue apartment. However, when police officers went to the pair’s apartment, they found no evidence of a burglary.
During the course of the investigation, the officers did find drugs and several drug-related items, including bags of heroin, hypodermic needles, and a glass pipe. As a result, Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro were placed under arrest and charged with possession of heroin, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of hypodermic needles, and making a false statement to law enforcement.
Remarkably, just a few hours after Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro were released from police custody, they were arrested again. A woman went to police headquarters and reported another burglary. Police returned to the apartment of Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro to investigate, and then arrested the two men.
After being arrested again, Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro faced additional charges of burglary and theft of moveable property.
In New Jersey, burglary is addressed by N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2. Prosecutors typically charge burglary as a third degree felony. If Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro are convicted of third degree burglary, they could each be sentenced to as many as five (5) years in NJ State Prison.
After being arrested a second time, Mr. Fogarty and Mr. Mascaro were taken to the Bergen County Jail, where they were each being held on $7,500 bail amounts.
For more information, check out the NJ.com article entitled “Police: Hillsdale Men Report Burglary, Arrested on Burglary Charges.“