Stolen Vehicle Pursuit Ends in Crash and Fire in Fairfield
FAIRFIELD, NJ — The Fairfield Police Department has taken 15 reports of motor vehicle burglaries in the area of Henning Drive since the early-morning hours of Aug. 31, according to Fairfield police.
On Friday at approximately 2 a.m., Fairfield officers were called to 85 Henning Drive to investigate a burglary of a 2016 white GMC Acadia that was parked on the street.
The victim informed the officers that he had placed the vehicle’s keys and the keys to his home under the front seat and that these were now missing. Also missing was loose change that the victim said was in the vehicle.
The officers advised the victim that they strongly felt the actor(s) might return to steal the vehicle. According to police, the victim did not have a spare set of keys to move the vehicle from the location.
At this point, Fairfield officers initiated a surveillance of the Acadia, and at approximately 4:30 a.m., an officer observed the interior light of the Arcadia come on to observe the vehicle’s brake lights come on.
The Acadia then began to pull away, at which time the officer activated his emergency lights. The Acadia went around the police vehicle, and the officer was able to see that the driver was a black male wearing a partial ski mask.
At this point, other officers arrived in the area and a motor vehicle pursuit was undertaken. The pursuit led to Little Falls Road, where the Acadia crashed and rolled over, taking down power lines, and the Acadia eventually caught fire.
Due to the hazardous situation, officers were initially unable to determine whether the suspect was still inside the vehicle. After the Fairfield Fire Department extinguished the fire and PSE&G made the scene safe, it was determined that the suspect was not in the vehicle.
A vigorous search of the area was conducted for the suspect with negative results.
At approximately 6:30 a.m., the North Caldwell Police Department received a report of a stolen vehicle located in proximity to the crash site and it is strongly believed that the suspect from the pursuit was the actor in the theft of this vehicle.
The Fairfield Police Department is actively investigating this case.
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