Police Chase 3 Masked Car Thieves Through Woods In Mahwah: Cops

MAHWAH, NJ — Three men were arrested in Mahwah on Sunday after police caught them in a stolen car and chased them on foot, officials said.

Around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday, police got a 911 call from someone on Owens Road reporting that a car had just been stolen from a driveway, police said Tuesday.

Police found the car in the area and saw three people inside dressed in all black and wearing ski masks, police said.

The suspects noticed the police and ran into a wooded area, then through several rear yards, police said.

Officer Christopher Minchin chased and caught a suspect on the grounds of the Betsy Ross School, police said. Officer Vincent Quintana chased and apprehended a second suspect in a back yard on Malcolm Road, police said.

Police established a perimeter to catch the third suspect, they said, and deployed the Drone Unit and Mahwah police dogs.

Soon, Officer Liam Santanas caught the third suspect on Miller Road.

A police investigation determined that the men forced their way into the locked car and pride open the steering column to start it.

Police subsequently found two other vehicles in the area that were broken into and burglarized.

Victor Quito-Mejia, 20, from the Bronx, and Angel Solis-Pinto, 18, from South Setauket, were charged with burglary, theft, resisting arrest, employing a juvenile in the commission of a crime, possession of a weapon, and possession of burglary tools.

They were taken to the Bergen County Jail to await a Superior Court hearing.

The third suspect was a 16-year-old from Jamaica, N.Y. He was served with juvenile deliquency complaints for burglary, theft, resisting arrest, criminal mischief, and possession of burglary tools, police said. He was taken to the Bergen County Juvenile Detention Center.

Police are still investigating to see if the men were involved in other area car burglaries, they said.