Jewelry, Flat-Screen TV Stolen During One of Six New Burglaries Lawrence Township Police Are Investigating

Six new burglaries and one attempted burglary were reported to Lawrence Township police between Friday, Oct. 7, and Sunday, Oct. 16.

In addition to investigating these new break-ins, police are still busy working to solve the more than two dozen other burglaries that have taken place in Lawrence Township during the last two months.

Lt. Charles Edgar, spokesman for the township police department, released the following details about the latest burglaries.

Burglary – Notre Dame High School

On Sunday, Oct. 16, Richard Pearson, 48, of the 100 block of Lawrence Road (Route 206) in Lawrence Township was arrested and charged with burglary and theft after he allegedly stole two orange traffic cones from an unlocked storage shed at the rear of Notre Dame High School, Edgar said.

He said police received a call about 3 p.m. from one of two witnesses who reported seeing a man enter the shed and remove the cones. The shed, filled with athletic equipment, was located near the school’s football and track facilities.

Police officers canvassed the area and, at about 3:30 p.m., Officer Iwona Smith located Pearson on a bicycle with one of the cones in his possession, Edgar said.

He said police are investigating to determine if Pearson was involved in any of the other recent burglaries in town.

Burglary – Colonial Lake Drive

At 8:26 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 14, a 49-year-old resident of Colonial Lake Drive called police to report that about $2,200 worth of jewelry and a flat-screen TV valued at $1,500 had been stolen from her home, Edgar said.

The woman told police she arrived home to find her side door ajar and the jewelry and TV missing, Edgar said. He said police found no evidence of forced entry and believe the burglary took place either on Oct. 13 or during the early hours of Oct. 14.

Burglary – Rider University

At 4:51 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11, township police were called to investigate a burglary and theft of a cell phone at the West Village dormitory on the Rider University campus in the 2000 block of Lawrence Road (Route 206), Edgar said.

When the victim, a 21-year-old student, opened the door leading into the common area of the suite in which her dorm room is located, she found a male coming out of her room, Edgar said. When she asked him what he was doing, the male said he had been “looking for something” and quickly left the suite.

The woman then checked her room and discovered her cell phone, worth $125, was missing, Edgar said. He said the woman described the male as black, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, 140 pounds, wearing a pullover sweatshirt and jeans.

Burglary – Cedar Court

At 1:59 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 10, a 39-year-old resident of Cedar Court called police to report that, within the preceding 10 or 15 minutes, someone had entered his open garage and stolen his mountain bike, which was valued at about $430, Edgar said.

He said officers searched the area but were unable to locate the stolen bike.

Attempted Burglary – Princeton Pike

Police were summoned to an office building in the 3100 block of Princeton Pike at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 10, after evidence was discovered that someone had tried to force their way through six different doors, Edgar said.

Pry marks were found on the door frames, he said, nothing that two of the doors go into electrical rooms and the other four lead into offices. The burglary attempt is believed to have taken place sometime during the preceding weekend.  

Burglary – Bakers Basin Road

At 7:37 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 8, police were notified that someone had broken into a house in the 200 block of Bakers Basin Road by forcing away a piece of plywood that had been put up to cover a garage window and then reaching inside to unlock the garage door, Edgar said.

He confirmed it is the same house that was condemned after part of a basement wall collapsed as a result of flooding caused by Hurricane Irene. On Sept. 9, township police were notified that someone had .

Nothing appeared to have been taken during the latest burglary but some damage was done to the inside of the house, which remains condemned and unoccupied since repairs have not yet been made, Edgar said.

He said the owner went to check on the property and called police after finding the plywood removed from the garage window and lights on inside the house. The break-in was believed to have taken place sometime earlier in the day on Oct. 8, he said.

Burglary – Brunswick Pike

Following the arrest of , township police officers checked other businesses in that immediate area to make sure no other break-ins had taken place, Edgar said.

Among those buildings checked was the state Department of Transportation facility also in the 2700 block of Brunswick Pike. Employees there told police they had found numerous items of “out of place” in their break room within the last few days but they did not believe that anything had actually been stolen, Edgar said.

He said police checked the building but were not able to find any evidence of forced entry. He said no charges have yet been filed in connection with the break-in at the DOT facility.

Edgar noted that detectives are still trying to determine if Brown – who has a history of burglary convictions dating back to the mid-1980s – or Mark A. Young, who was arrested on Oct. 6 after he allegedly broke into a garage on Haveson Avenue, had anything to do with any of the other break-ins during the last couple months.

Lawrence Township police ask anyone with information about any of the above crimes to call detectives at (609) 896-1111.

Other similar crimes during the last two months (with the dates on which they were reported) include:

• Oct. 7: Burglary (Arrest Made), Golden Empire, 2700 block Brunswick Pike
• Oct. 6: Burglary (Arrest Made), Haveson Avenue
• Oct. 5: Attempted Burglary, Vermont Street
• Oct. 5: Burglary, Colonial Lakes, Brunswick Pike
• Oct. 4: Burglary, Mercer Meadows Park
• Oct. 3: Burglary, Gedney Road
• Oct. 2: Burglary: Keefe Road
• Sept. 30: Attempted Burglary, 900 block Lawrence Road
• Sept. 30: Burglary, Roxboro Road
• Sept. 30: Burglary, Trenton Police Athletic League, Betts Avenue
• Sept. 26: Burglary, Cherry Tree Lane
• Sept. 26: Burglary, Cobblestone Way
• Sept. 26: Burglary, Canal View Drive
• Sept. 26: Attempted Burglary, 1700 block Brunswick Pike
• Sept. 23: Burglary, 1700 block Brunswick Pike
• Sept. 23: Burglary, Foodwerx Café, Lenox Drive
• Sept. 21: Attempted Burglary, Franklin Tavern, Franklin Corner Road
• Sept. 17: Burglary (Arrests Made), Spruce Street
• Sept. 17: Burglary, Valley Forge Avenue
• Sept. 17: Burglary, Mabel Avenue
• Sept. 15: Burglary, Lawn Park Avenue
• Sept. 15: Attempted Burglary, Capt. Paul’s Firehouse Dogs, Princeton Pike
• Sept. 14: Burglary, Sunoco, 1700 block Brunswick Pike
• Sept. 14: Burglary, Ohio Avenue
• Sept. 10 Burglary, Trumbull Avenue
• Sept. 9: Attempted Burglary, Lawrence Anthony Fine Jewelers, Brunswick Pike
• Sept. 9: Burglary, Bakers Basin Road
• Aug. 29: Burglary, Capitol Car Wash, Princeton Avenue
• Aug. 26: Burglary, Glendale Liquors, Quakerbridge Road
• Aug. 26: Burglary, Pathway Car Care, Princeton Avenue
• Aug. 23: Burglary, Michigan Avenue

See Also:

Oct. 8 - More Burglaries Reported, But Police Arrest 2 Suspects

Oct. 3 -

Sept. 30 -

Sept. 27 -

Sept. 27 - Car Worth $148,000 Stolen from Lawrence Dealership

Sept. 27 -

Sept. 26 -          

Sept. 22 -

Sept. 20 -

Sept. 16 - Home on Lawn Park Avenue Burglarized, Ransacked

Sept. 15 - Attempted Burglary at Captain Paul's & Two Other Burglaries Under Investigation by Lawrence PD

Sept. 15 -

Sept. 14 - $10,000 Worth of Property Stolen from Lawrence Twp. Family Left Homeless by Hurricane Irene Flood Waters

Sept. 14 - Stolen Bicycle Found in Possession of 13-Year-Old

Sept. 13 -

Sept. 8 -

Aug. 19 -

Aug. 19 -

Aug. 17 -