Stolen Cars, Break-ins, Chase and Crash. A Busy Day for Police in Three Towns

Livingston, Millburn and West Orange police arrested two after an alleged car theft, car burglaries and ensuing chase on Interstate 280 on Friday.

Clifton Irving, 35, of Newark, and Shante Rains, 32, of Newark, were charged with eluding, receiving stolen property and possession of CDS paraphernalia by West Orange police. Millburn police charged them with two counts of receiving stolen property and plan to file further charges. Livingston police have charged them with theft of removable property.

Millburn Police Capt. Greg Weber said local police were alerted to a car theft in the parking lot at Michael's Hair Stylists in the downtown area. Police recovered a car that was stolen out of Union County, he said. Police are investigating car burglaries at Millburn High School and the office building at 150 John F. Kennedy Parkway in connection to the two arrested. Police are still sorting out the charges for the car burglaries, Weber said.

Millburn police were notified by the security at the office building on JFK Parkway about the car burglaries, but the duo was gone by the time officers arrived, he said.

Weber said there's video of the incidents, but he did not give details on what the video showed. Additionally, the owner of the Union County stolen vehicle was at headquarters to recover it Friday night, he said.

Livingston police Det. Sgt. Anthony Dippold said they were alerted to the theft in Millburn before they were called by the owner of BMW at Tony's Shoe Repair on E. Mt. Pleasant Avenue. The car owner told police she witnessed a man removing an iPhone from her unlocked car, he said, and the vehicle matched the description from Millburn police.

West Orange police said they received a crime alert from Millburn and Livingston around 12:01 p.m. that said the suspects were in a stolen vehicle. West Orange officers spotted the vehicle and a chase ensued. Officers briefly lost sight of the car and then spotted it on I-280.

Irving attempted to flee after the car crashed on the interstate, but was detained by police on Northfield Avenue in West Orange, according to West Orange police. Rains was detained in the stolen vehicle, police said.

Livingston police are investigating if the thefts are tied into last weekend's car burglaries at the Livingston Mall, Dippold said, but so far no connection has been established. 

Reported by Jennifer Connic, Joshua Wilwohl and Marilyn Joyce Lehren