3 Charged With Illegal Gun Possession In Pair Of Wayne Incidents: PD

WAYNE, NJ — Wayne Police have arrested three North Jersey residents for illegal weapons possession and other crimes after two recent incidents, officials said.

Police said two of the men tried to extort money from a Wayne resident after purchasing copies of documents that had been stolen from his home several months ago. Another ran across Route 23 and nearly got hit by a driver, before police said he was arrested on a warrant. Officers found a loaded handgun in both incidents, Detective Captain Dan Daly said on Monday.

Here is a summary of the arrests:

On Feb. 19, police responded to a criminal coercion call at a residence on Chopin Drive which had been burglarized several months ago, Daly said. The residents reported that a man rang the doorbell, told the homeowner he had his passport and Social Security card in the car, and demanded $1,000 from him. Police later determined those documents had been stolen in the earlier home robbery.

A relative called police, and responding officers saw two men sitting in a parked vehicle outside the residence who the homeowner pointed out as suspects.

Daly said the driver, 29-year-old Wahid Floyd of Newark, admitted to purchasing the documents through Telegram and police said they found the drug Suboxone when they searched him.

The passenger, 24-year-old Alquadir Ali-Jones of Newark, also faces charges and police said he had a vial of urine used to defraud drug tests in his possession.

Police found a 9MM Taurus PT111 G2 handgun in the car, which was loaded. They said both Floyd and Ali-Jones have criminal records preventing them from lawfully possessing weapons.

On Feb. 22, two police officers were on patrol in the Willowbrook area, when they saw a man run across the divided highway on Route 23. A car had to brake sharply to avoid hitting him, Daly said.

The officers approached the man and requested his identification, and he identified himself as John Houston, Daly said. Police learned the 34-year-old Paterson resident was wanted by county officials and arrested him.

Police said Houston had a 9-millimeter Ruger P85 in his waistband which was loaded. Police said he confessed to buying the handgun illegally, and that Houston has a criminal history that prevents him from legally owning weapons.

All three men have been charged on a complaint warrant and were taken to the Passaic County Jail, officials said.