Secaucus Man Found Dead Inside Car Sunday

SECAUCUS, NJ — There was no homicide Sunday in Secaucus, said the town's police chief, Dennis Miller.

At 7:48 a.m. Sunday, Secaucus Police received a 911 call about a man breaking into a 2026 Hyundai Elantra parked in the parking garage at 200 Mill Creek Drive.

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When the initial police officers arrived, they found the car door ajar and discovered the lifeless body of a 62-year-old man inside the car. His name was not released, but he is a Secaucus resident, said police. At this time, there does not appear to be any foul play suspected in his death, said police. The cause of his death is being investigated by the Regional Medical Examiner, which is doing an autopsy on his body.

A description of the burglary suspect was immediately broadcast to all patrol units and surrounding police agencies. At 11:02 a.m., Secaucus Police Officer Jonathan Padron observed a man fitting the description of the burglary suspect walking in the area of Lighting Way, which is directly across the street from where the car break-in happened.

Padron approached the man, identified as Quashawn Clayton, 28, of Hartford, CT, and ordered him to stop. Clayton disregarded that order and fled on foot with Padron in foot pursuit. Clayton was placed under arrest in the area of 100 Lighting Way. He was found in possession of credit cards belonging to the deceased man in the car.

Clayton is charged with Burglary [2C:18-2a(1)], Theft of Moveable Property [2C:20-3(a)], Credit Card Theft [2C:21-6c(1)], Obstructing the Administration of Law [2C:29-1a] and Failure to Report a Death [52:17B-89]. He was taken to the Hudson County Jail.

Because no crime is suspected in the man's death, and this has not been classified as a homicide, Secaucus Police are the lead agency handling this incident. The Hudson County Prosecutor investigates if a homicide is suspected to have occurred.

"I want to publicly thank and acknowledge the reporting person for not just passing by but instead reported the crime in progress to the police," Miller said. "I must also recognize the diligence of Police Officer Padron in capturing the suspect within hours of the commission of this crime."

"Additionally, I want to say how proud I am of how far this department has come. Teamwork, coordination of effort and the sharing of intelligence across our various divisions is why this department is successful and this arrest is a representative example of just that."