Two Charged With Burglarizing a Vehicle in Westwood

Two men were arrested early Friday morning and charged with burglarizing a vehicle on Clinton Avenue in Westwood, police said.

An officer on patrol around 3 a.m. noticed the pair walking down the middle of Clinton Avenue with the hoods of their sweatshirts raised, according to Chief Frank Regino. When the officer started to approach them, the two men started walking faster and then ran, Regino said, and the officer was unable to locate them immediately.

Additional officers arrived at the scene and after a search of the area, found that a vehicle parked on Clinton Avenue had its interior light on, Regino said. Officers reported that the interior of the car had been ransacked and it appeared that items had been taken.

Police broadcast an alarm with the description of the two men who had been seen near the vehicle and a Hillsdale police officer stopped two men who fit the description near the Westwood/Hillsdale border.

According to Regino, the men were searched and were found to have items from the Clinton Avenue car in their possession.

Christian Sapp, 20, of Jersey City, and Tyshawn Culver, 19, of New York City, were arrested, brought to Westwood Police headquarters and charged with burglary of a vehicle. Sapp was also charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance. Their bail was set at $5,000 each and Regino said they were transported to Bergen County Jail.

After the arrests, Regino said police found that several other cars appeared to have been burglarized in the same area.

"They are under investigation at this time to see if there is any connection," Regino said. "There have been other burglaries in other communities. We don't know if they're connected. It's being investigated."