Chester Police Handle More Than 2,700 Calls In July

CHESTER, NJ — A day when 17 cars were broken into and three were stolen from one neighborhood, another where police rescued a dog shut inside of a hot car and a chase with a motorcyclist, were among the notable calls the Chester Police Department responded to in July.

The department reported that among the more than 2,700 calls officers faced, there were 25 car crashes that they investigated. They had 62 calls with the first aid squad and 21 with the fire department.

Among the top notable incidents the police department said they investigated in July were:

• The 14 different calls the department received on July 24 from residents in the Dogwood Acres neighborhood, when in the middle of the night, there were three separate cars reported stolen and 17 burglarized. Another car was also found that day in a resident's driveway on Cramer Driver, that had previously disappeared from Montville.
• A woman from Peapack and Gladstone who was charged with animal cruelty, after police say they received a call about her distressed dog in a car in the Home Goods parking lot on July 15. Chester Officers gave the dog water and called Animal Control, connecting with the owner an hour later. Police say the unidentified woman told them she was shopping while her dog was in the car.
• On July 26, a Pennsylvania motorcycle that Chester Police say had an expired registration. When the responding officer tried to pull over the motorcyclist, the rider took off on Route 206, in what police described a “reckless manner, traveling at high speeds and passing vehicles over the double-yellow line.” Another unidentified motorcyclist gave police information about the first one, who turned out to be from Belvidere. Police charged the first unnamed motorcyclist with numerous charges, including eluding them.
• A Corona, New York woman who they charged with simple assault in an Old Mill Road incident on July 25.
• On July 28, an unidentified Maplewood man who was pulled over in Chester on Route 206 near Pottersville Road, was discovered to have had a traffic warrant from Seaside Park. He now has a court appearance in that town after Chester Police stopped him.
• A police pursuit, that involved a Mendham Township Police Officer who noticed what appeared to be a car burglary or theft happening on July 29, with a group from another car trying to enter it. That group later took off, leaving the car behind. The Morris County Sheriff’s Office assisted with the investigation, discovering that the car had been stolen from Teaneck and was left unlocked with its keys inside.

Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.