NJ Man Charged In Connection With Wall Vehicle Burglaries

WALL, NJ — A Newark man has been arrested and charged in connection with a series of motor vehicle burglaries and attempted burglaries that occurred in Wall Township and surrounding communities in April, police said.

Kevin Olivo, 23, was arrested on June 19 and charged with five counts of burglary to a motor vehicle and two counts of theft, police said.

Olivo was arrested following an investigation by the Wall Township Police Department’s Patrol & Detective Bureau, which started on April 13 when police responded to reports of multiple vehicle burglaries on Sheridan Drive and Schoolhouse Road.

In each of these cases, police said the targeted vehicles had been left unlocked overnight. Surveillance footage obtained from residents helped identify the suspect vehicle (a black Tesla sedan) and a male suspect.

A breakthrough in the investigation occurred when Patrolman Thomas Gavaghan and Patrolman Kyle Pelech identified the Tesla’s license plate, and found that the vehicle (a rental) was involved in a single-car motor vehicle crash in Bloomfield, NJ, just hours after the burglaries in Wall Township. The driver at the time of the crash was identified as Olivo.

Body-worn camera footage from the responding Bloomfield Police officers showed Olivo wearing the same clothing as the suspect captured on surveillance video during the burglaries, police said.

Further investigation revealed that Olivo and the same vehicle were also linked to attempted burglaries in Howell Township and Jackson Township.

On April 18, Wall Township Detectives executed a search warrant on the impounded Tesla, and the search yielded numerous items reported stolen from Wall Township victims, police said.

“This arrest is a direct result of meticulous police work by our patrol officers and detectives,” said Wall Township Police Chief Sean O'Halloran. “I commend Patrolman Gavaghan, Patrolman Pelech, and Detective Zach Honecker for their thorough investigation that connected separate events into a single case."

“This also highlights the critical importance of inter-agency cooperation with our partners in Bloomfield, Howell, and Jackson," O'Halloran continued. "Finally, this serves as a crucial reminder to all residents: please lock your vehicles and remove all valuables to prevent these crimes of opportunity.”

Following his arrest, Olivo was brought to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution. The investigation into a second suspected person remains ongoing.

Anyone with additional information is urged to contact the Wall Township Police Department’s Detective Bureau at 732-449-4500.

You can see the original post from the Wall Township Police Department here.