Fleeing Shoplifter Hit by Car in Mall Parking Lot, Cops Say

A man trying to evade arrest on shoplifting charges at Garden State Plaza on Christmas Eve was hit by a car and thrown in jail by Paramus Police, cops said Thursday.

George Duran, 53, was initially taken into Paramus Police custody after being detained by mall security after they allege he shoplifted from Macy’s at approximately 4 p.m. on Dec. 24. 

Duran then “managed to slip out of one of the handcuffs and flee from the officers” as he was being placed into the rear of a police vehicle, police said. 

Duran darted through the mall parking lot to avoid capture but was eventually struck by a vehicle before he escaped the parking complex, cops said.  

The suspect complained of leg pain but was medically cleared to be transported to jail, according to Paramus Police Lt. John Scully. Duran, a Paterson resident, was charged with shoplifting and eluding police and spent Christmas in Bergen County Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail, Paramus Police said.

This was not the first time Paramus Police officers have encountered Duran. In February he was charged with possession of stolen property and resisting arrest at Garden State Plaza.

In that incident, Duran was found hiding in the bushes at the mall with $150 worth of stolen property.