Blotter: Man Assaulted and Robbed of Back Pack

A 22-year-old Irvington man was assaulted and robbed at the intersection of Coolidge Road and Garfield Place on Saturday night, according to Maplewood Police.

The victim reported to Police that he was walking south on Coolidge Road near Garfield Place and texting on his phone at around 9:15 p.m. on Nov. 12 when two black males approached him from behind and knocked him to the ground.

The victim says that one of the assailants began to wrestle with him in an effort to take his phone as the second man was kicking him in the torso. The victim was able to get up and run away with his cell phone but left his Jansport back pack behind which contained some personal papers and a book.

Police believe that the two actors took the back pack and then fled on foot. The victim could only describe the actors as black males with thin builds. One was wearing a black puffy jacket and the second was wearing dark colored clothing.  The victim reported minor injuries that did not require medical attention.

Other crimes allegedly committed this week in Maplewood include the theft of a Surley Cross Check 24 speed bicycle that was reported stolen from the front porch of a house on Plymouth Avenue just after midnight on Nov. 8. The bicycle was left on the porch unlocked when it was stolen.

Also, on Nov. 14, a resident of Field Road reported to police that someone removed a brown terra cotta flower pot from his front porch. The item was taken sometime between 11:45 p.m. on Nov. 13 and 3 p.m. on the Nov. 14.