Newark Jail Detainees Keep Vandalizing Fire Sprinklers: Police

NEWARK, NJ — Less than three months after the highly touted Newark police processing unit at 480 Clinton Avenue opened, prisoners have already caused $4,000 of damage to its fire sprinkler system, authorities say.

According to the Newark Department of Public Safety, detainees at the municipal jail have broken four sprinklers in the cellblocks since the facility opened in January.

Each fire sprinkler is valued at $1,000, authorities said.

According to police, the jail's cellblocks recently suffered two instances of vandalism in a week. On Saturday morning, Felipe Soares, 18, of Kearny, allegedly vandalized the fire sprinkler inside the ceiling of his holding cell, setting off an alarm and activating the system.

Nobody suffered injury during the incident, authorities stated.

Soares was being held in connection with a burglary of an Astor Street home at the time. He was also charged with robbing a man near Chestnut and Pulaski Streets on Feb. 26, authorities said.

Previous instances of sprinkler-tampering include an incident on Feb. 24, when an 18-year-old detainee being held on a CDS-related charge allegedly vandalized a sprinkler valve in his cell, police said.

The municipal holding cell at 480 Clinton Avenue replaced the much-maligned Green Street jail, which experienced “serious problems with overcrowding and sanitation” for decades, according to Newark Mayor Ras Baraka.

Authorities had reported at least seven suicides within the last decade at the Green Street cellblock, and a U.S. Department of Justice investigation found a range of alleged issues including a lack of proper training for officers, rodent infestation and procedures for preventing suicides not being followed.

• See related article: Newark Closes Green Street Jail: Suicides, Rats Reported

Photo (Clinton Avenue holding facility): City of Newark Press Office, Flickr

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