Manhunt For Possibly Armed Man In Dukes Estate Prompted Warning In Hillsborough

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — A wanted possibly armed Pennsylvania man's cellphone was pinged to the Duke Estate area on Sunday prompting a search and warning by Hillsborough Police.

On Dec. 11 at 4:49 a.m., Whitehall Township, PA Police Department contacted Hillsborough Police about an arrest warrant for Alvin Williams, 42, of Whitehall, PA and previously Monroe, NJ for an incident that happened in their area, said Hillsborough Police Lt. Stephen Nowacki.

Detectives from Whitehall Township said they got a cell phone ping that triangulated Williams, who could possibly be armed within 2200 meters (or around 1.25 miles) of the Duke Estate which was his last known area until his phone was powered off, said police.

Duke Security closed its facility for the day as a precaution.

Hillsborough Township sent out an alert to residents around 11:50 a.m. on Sunday about the police activity saying "there is no reason for the public to be alarmed." Read More: Police Activity Reported In Area Of Dukes Estate

Aerial surveillance and a foot search of the area of the triangulated position were conducted, yet nothing was found, said police.

No vehicles reported to have been driven by Williams were seen or ever located in the area. Williams had no known ties to Hillsborough, said police.

"Due to the large radius of the reported position and the uncertainty, if the suspect was ever actually within Hillsborough Township, the search was terminated as it was believed Williams was no longer in the area which was confirmed by subsequent cell phone pings which placed Williams out of New Jersey," according to police.

Police sent Williams' information to surrounding authorities.

Since the township sent out an alert, a screenshot of a message has been shared on multiple community Facebook groups. Police addressed this message.

"The Hillsborough Police Department is aware of a bulletin that was not issued by this police department, that has been circulating online. All actions and investigative means taken during this investigation were performed out of an abundance of caution and no evidence was uncovered to suggest that Williams was ever actually on foot on Duke property nor did evidence suggest that the public was ever in danger," said police.

Along with the Hillsborough Township Police Department, several other authorities helped in the search including Manville Police Department, Somerset County Prosecutor's Office, Somerset County Sheriff's Office, New Jersey State Police, Millstone Valley Fire Department, Robert Wood Johnson EMS, Hillsborough Township Office of Emergency Management, New Jersey Department of Transportation.

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