Bias Intimidation, Theft, DWI: Princeton Police Blotter

The following is a summary of incidents as reported by Princeton Police:

PRINCETON, NJ - On Aug. 28, a Jetson Atlas 14" Fat Tire folding electric bike, valued at $500, was stolen from a bike rack in front of a residence located on Prospect Avenue. The suspect, described as a Black man wearing a green and white Eagles trucker-style hat, a green Eagles vest over a white T-shirt, and blue jeans, entered the property riding a neon yellow bicycle, while carrying red and black bolt cutters which were approximately three feet in length. The man used the bolt cutters to cut a lock valued at $40 before fleeing eastbound on Prospect Avenue with the stolen e-bike, abandoning the neon yellow bicycle at the scene. The total reported loss is $540. This incident remains under investigation.

On Aug. 29, a resident reported that his bicycle, valued at approximately $500, had been stolen by unknown actor(s) sometime between May 1 and Aug. 29. The bicycle was described as a Trek FX-1 bicycle, dark gray/ black in color. The victim last observed his bicycle secured to a bike rack on Prospect Ave. There are no suspects at this time.

• On Aug. 29 at 5:40 p.m., patrols responded to Quarry Park near Spruce Street for the report of criminal mischief, which was later determined to also be a bias incident. During an unknown timeframe, an unknown suspect(s)utilized a white paint device in order to place graffiti on two benches in the park. The graffiti stated "Death to the IDF Global INTIFADA" on both benches.
• On Aug. 28 at 7:54 p.m., patrols responded to a residence on Linwood Circle for a report of a criminal mischief/bias incident. The victims reported that an unknown suspect(s) vandalized their fence by writing "Death to the IDF! Free Gaza!" on it with what appeared to be white paint.
• On Aug. 20 at 8:12 a.m., patrols responded to Grover Park for a report of a criminal mischief/bias incident. Investigation determined that sometime between 07 a.m. on Aug. 19 and 07 a.m. on Aug. 20, an unknown suspect(s) wrote in white paint, "Gaza. Free Palestine. Gaza. Death to Israel " on a mirror located in the men's bathroom. It should be noted that this incident was reported again on Aug. 31, but was determined to be the same incident.
• On Aug. 19 at 12:02 p.m., a resident reported a criminal mischief incident that occurred at Smoyer Park. Patrols later responded to the area and observed graffiti to a traffic stop sign located within Smoyer Park, which had been vandalized utilizing a white paint pen with the phrase "Zionism" under the word "STOP".

All of these incidents are under investigation by the Princeton Police Department Detective Bureau.

On Aug. 30, at 3:24 p.m., patrols were dispatched to a business on Nassau Street for a reported shoplifting incident. The investigation determined that a suspect shoplifted approximately 325 items of merchandise valued at $5,987 from the store between April 9, and Aug. 30. This incident remains under investigation.

On Aug. 31, at 5:26 p.m., subsequent to a call for service regarding an erratic driver, the driver was arrested after he was found to be operating his vehicle while intoxicated. He was placed under arrest and taken to headquarters for processing. After processing, the man was issued summonses for Driving While Intoxicated and Reckless Driving before being released to a sober adult.

On Sept. 1, at 4:39 p.m., a man reported that sometime between Aug. 1, and Sept. 1, his green/gray Electra Loft Go! 7D EQ Step-Over electric bicycle, valued at approximately $2,000, was stolen from a bicycle rack located on Witherspoon Street. It was determined that the bicycle had been secured via a lock from the front tire to the bike rack at the time of the theft. However, the unknown actor(s) removed the front tire in order to steal the property. At this time, there are no known suspects, and the investigation is ongoing.

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