Teens Slapped with $50,000 Bail for Stealing Snacks and Drinks in Bloomfield

A pair of teenagers were charged with robbery and slapped with a $50,000 bail after police arrested them for allegedly throwing snack cakes at a Quick Chek manager during a shoplifting encounter in Bloomfield.

Bloomfield police arrested the teens - an 18-year-old from Lumberton and a 19-year-old from Newark – on March 23.

According to police, the store manager of the Quick Chek on Broad Street stated that he saw one of the teens place a drink and snack cake in his jacket pockets. The manager told police that when he confronted the teen, he threw the items at him and ran out of the store with three other accomplices.

The four suspects entered a silver Pontiac and fled south on Broad Street, stated police.

Bloomfield Police Department Sgt. Anthony Servedio told Patch that the act of throwing the snack cakes and drink upgraded a charge of theft to a more serious charge of robbery.

“Anytime someone uses force against another in the commission of a theft, it becomes a robbery,’ Servedio explained.

The bail amount range for a robbery charge is $50,000 to $100,000 in New Jersey, with the possibility of a “no 10 percent option.”