$450K In Cash Stolen From Lakewood Business, Police Say

LAKEWOOD, NJ — A Lakewood man has been charged after detectives recovered nearly $450,000 in cash stolen from a business in town, Lakewood police said Wednesday.

William Ordenana-Arauz, 48, was charged with burglary and two counts of theft, police said.

The owner of the business, which police said is on Ocean Avenue but did not identify otherwise, called police about noon Sunday and reported the business was missing about $100,000 in cash, police said.

While detectives were investigating, the business owner did a more detailed audit and realized more than $300,000 was missing, police said.

Detectives soon identified a suspect who was believed to have previously performed work at the business, and their investigation determined the suspect had gone to a storage facility in Freehold after leaving the Lakewood business, police said.

Authorities obtained search warrants for the man's vehicle and a storage unit in Freehold and recovered just under $450,000 in cash, along with the business's digital video recorder, which investigators believe was removed during the burglary, police said.

"Our detectives put together an outstanding investigation that led to the recovery of a significant amount of stolen cash and key evidence," Lakewood Police Chief Gregory H. Meyer said. "Their efforts gave this victim the opportunity to recover their property and ensured that the person responsible was held accountable."

"I also want to thank the Ocean County Sheriff's Department, members of Shomrim, and several area businesses for their assistance throughout this investigation," Meyer said. "Their willingness to share information and work together played an important role in helping the detectives identify the suspect and ultimately bring this case to a successful conclusion."

Ordenana-Arauz was not listed in Ocean County Jail records on Wednesday.

The investigation remains ongoing, police said. Anyone with information related to this incident is encouraged to contact Detective Matthew Richardson at 732-363-0200, ext. 5342.