Autistic Boy's Christmas Presents Stolen

South Brunswick, NJ - It’s one of those Christmas crimes that almost sounds unreal: On Thursday, Dec. 17 someone broke into a home in the Dayton section of South Brunswick Township and stole all of the presents there.

To make matters even worse, the home belonged to a single mother, who had bought the gifts for her 5-year-old autistic son, South Brunswick police said.

“They removed presents, some of which were later returned to a local Target store,” South Brunswick Police Captain James Ryan told Patch, adding that they did not steal anything else from the home. “The mom explained that she had spent all her money buying the gifts and was unable to replace them.”

After hearing that, six South Brunswick police officers rallied together and coordinated with the local police union to replace the boy’s presents. In fact, they more than doubled the number of gifts that were stolen, Ryan said.

On the morning of Christmas Eve, the officers showed up at the woman’s home to give her the gifts, and she was tearful in her gratitude, Ryan said.

“They wanted to make sure this little boy had a Christmas this year and pulled together to make it possible. They represent the best of our department,” Chief Raymond Hayducka said in a statement.

The investigation into the burglary is ongoing. Two people are suspected in the incident, and one has already been apprehended and charged in connection with the burglary, Ryan said. The other remains at large.