Son Of Former Middletown Police Chief Charged With Burglary

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — The son of a former Middletown police chief was arrested in September and charged with stealing fishing and crabbing equipment from the Belford Seafood Co-op.

The alleged burglary happened on Aug. 18, but Robert Oches, Jr., 42, was arrested on September 17, confirmed Middletown police. He was charged with criminal mischief, burglary and theft of property.

Middletown police confirmed that it is the same Oches who is the son of the town's longtime chief of police, Robert Oches, Sr., who is now retired.

Police say that Oches went inside the Shoal Harbor Fishery at the co-op and stole refrigeration compressors, a conveyor belt and clam dredges, all valued at thousands of dollars. He also damaged the equipment, cutting the conveyor belt and destroying the refrigeration system, said police. Shoal Harbor Fishery was not open to the public at the time, said police.

Employees at the Belford Co-op confirmed the arrest to Patch. The co-op, located on the Raritan Bay in the Belford section of Middletown, is one of the last remaining vestiges of the Bayshore's long-respected fishing industry. It is a well-known place for locals to buy fresh fish.

"I will say that Middletown police did their investigation very thoroughly before making this arrest," said David Tauro, dock manager of the Belford Seafood Co-op. "To a fisherman, that gear is priceless."

Oches was processed and released on a summons complaint.

His father served in the Middletown police department for 40 years before he retired in 2014, at a salary of $164,452 per year.