Essex County Robbery Spree Includes Belleville Gas Station: Cops

BELLEVILLE, NJ — A group of four suspects robbed five Essex County gas stations on Monday, including one in Belleville, authorities say.

Newark detectives are in the early stages of investigating the three local gas station robberies and are working with detectives from Belleville and Orange, towns that each had one robbery on Monday, authorities said.

The Belleville robbery took place on Franklin Street and Belmont Avenue, according to authorities.

According to police, the first incident in Newark was reported around noon when a group of four masked men wearing dark clothing robbed a gas station on Sanford Avenue in the Vailsburg section of the city.

About 30 minutes later, the group robbed two service stations on Mt Prospect Avenue in the northern section of the city, police said.

Each of the five robberies were committed by four masked men, who were driving a gray Lexus with damage to the rear bumper and a Florida license plate, police said.

An investigation is ongoing, police said.

Authorities urged anyone with information to contact the Newark Police Division by reporting the information online at Newarkpdonline.org. Callers may also use one of the department’s toll-free hotlines at 1-877-NWK-TIPS (1-877-695-8477) or 1-877-NWK-GUNS (1-877-695-4867).