Wayne Man Shoots Neighbor’s AC Unit In Escalating Feud, Police Say

WAYNE, NJ — A Wayne man has been arrested for firing a gun, indoors, into his neighbor’s house, according to police.

Walter Preiss, 58, was arrested on Monday after escalating neighborly disputes prompted him to fire a gun into the house next door, police said.

On Monday, just after 5:30 p.m., police were called to a home on Longwood Court after HVAC workers found a bullet in the residence’s air conditioning unit.

Police said that the bullet pierced the central air conditioning condenser unit that was protruding from the house’s exterior.

Investigators conducted a gunshot trajectory analysis and determined that the bullet had been fired from a basement window next door, police said.

After learning of “prior neighborly disputes which had been escalating,” police interviewed the resident next door, Preiss, who claimed to have no guns in the home, police said.

A search of Preiss’ house unearthed several long guns, as well as evidence that one of them had been fired near his basement window, according to investigators.

Preiss was arrested and charged with possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and criminal mischief. He was taken to the Passaic County Jail to await court proceedings.