2 Charged After Gunpoint Home Invasion In Bergen County: Officials

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — Two Newark men stand accused of a Bergen County home invasion that saw one person held at gunpoint for a "substantial period of time," according to authorities.

James Lanier, 24, and Carlos Sanchez, 24, face a slew of charges linked to the robbery of a Kennedy Drive home in Cresshill the morning of Sept. 25, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.

The two men, currently detained on unrelated charges at Monmouth County jail, arrived at the house in car reported stolen days earlier and linked to another attempted car theft and a Tenafly burglary the day before, Musella said.

Lanier and Sanchez were served with criminal complaints related to this investigation Friday, the prosecutor's office said.

Now the pair face charges of kidnapping, armed robbery, aggravated assault, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, theft of movable property, receiving stolen property, burglary to a motor vehicle, and armed burglary, officials said.

In November, the two were linked to an auto theft ring targeting high-end vehicles in several New Jersey counties and in New York State, according to a previous release from the New Jersey State Police.

The defendants, police said, were accused of burglarizing homes in an attempt to steal the vehicles, which were then sold online with fake VINs.

Sanchez, whom police say was the group's ringleader, Lanier and three others were charged with conspiracy to commit theft and theft by unlawful taking, said officials.

Sanchez was arrested on Nov. 17 at a motel, where he was staying, and found with a handgun and key fobs linked to the alleged operation, said police.

Lanier was arrested later in Newark, police said.

Both were then lodged in the Monmouth County Jail, police added.