Arrest Made In Mahwah Cell Tower Battery Thefts

MAHWAH, NJ — Police charged a man with burglary after he allegedly stole dozens of batteries from several cell towers in the township earlier this month.

Ryan Whittaker, 37, was charged with two counts each of burglary and theft after police investigated the theft of 64 emergency backup batteries from towers from various locations, said Police Chief James Batelli.

Detective Sgt. Kevin Hebert determined that Whittaker allegedly entered the utility box at the base of each cell tower, disabled the alarms by placing tape over the activators and removed the batteries.

Police believe the batteries were sold to scrap metal businesses; they were valued at more than $10,000. Authorities also think they were stolen during the day so not to arouse suspicions since work is usually conducted at the towers during the day, Batelli said.

Detective Sgt. Kevin Herbert canvassed scrap metal sites and lifted fingerprints belonging to Whittaker near the utility box. Municipal Court Judge Dennis Harraka issued an arrest warrant for Whittaker based on the fingerprints and other information, Batelli said.

Wallington Police arrested Whittaker based on Mahwah's warrant. He had 17 of the batteries in his possession; 75 more batteries are also believed to have been stolen from the other cell phone towers, Batelli said.

Police said Whittaker may have been familiar with how the batteries were stored and how the alarms protecting them work due to previously working with electronics.

Detectives are contacting cell phone providers to try and determine where the other 75 batteries are from.

RELATED: 28 Batteries Stolen From ATT Cellular Site In Nutley

Dozens of batteries were stolen from cell towers throughout Essex County in March and earlier this month.

Three dozen utility batteries were stolen from a Sprint cellular tower in Belleville last month. The value of the batteries was estimated at $6,800, police said.

Batelli commended Hebert's "diligent work" and thanked the Wallington Police Department for its assistance.

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Photo: Ryan Whittaker, 37 — Mahwah Police Department