Jailed Mahwah Man Admits to Deli Burglary

A 23-year-old Mahwah man already in jail on burglary-related charges admitted to breaking into the Fardale Deli and Mini Mart last week and stealing an undisclosed amount of cash, police said Monday.

Stefanos Papastefanou is being held in the Passaic County Jail for allegedly burglarizing a convenience store in Ringwood, Mahwah Police Chief Jim Batelli said.

Ringwood authorities alerted Mahwah police to the similarities between the Passaic County burglary and the burglary of the Mahwah Mini Mart, police said. 

During an interview with Mahwah police from his Passaic County Jail cell, Papastefanou admitted to the Mahwah burglary, Batelli said.

During the interview with Mahwah Detective Kevin Herbert, police say Papastefanou also admitted to having a part in two other recent convenience store burglaries in neighboring towns. Batelli declined to elaborate on the details of the two other burglaries, but did say that Papastefanou likely had an accomplice in both of them.

Papastefanou told cops he committed the Mahwah burglary alone, Batelli said. 

Police are continuing to investigate the other two burglaries.

Papastefanou, who lives in Mahwah with his mother and sister, was charged with burglary, theft, criminal mischief and possession of burglary tools, Batelli said.

He is still in the Passaic County Jail. 

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