New Jersey
Posted: Feb 17, 2025 / 05:51 PM EST
Updated: Feb 17, 2025 / 05:51 PM EST
SHARE
PARAMUS, N.J. (PIX11) — A dash cam video recorded around 3 a.m. Sunday shows one teenager after another hopping out of a stolen white Mercedes Benz and then over a guardrail along the Garden State Parkway.
The teens were trying to escape from cops after police say the driver rammed not one, but two police vehicles while trying to get away. None of it worked.
More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State
This is not a new trend. Paramus residents know all too well how often thieves try to steal vehicles here and in other northern New Jersey suburbs.
In fact, PIX11 News rode along with the Paramus PD for PIX11 Community Closeup last November, when residential auto thefts were trending downward for 2024.
But criminals don’t take a winter break, and police officials say they’ve already logged 8 stolen vehicles this year.
“I know in the past, this has been the area close the parkway here, where we’ve seen more car thefts,” said Paramus resident Tobin Jacob.
By all accounts, this is a little slice of suburban paradise, one of many blocks in Bergen County. But what our mic hasn’t picked up is the low hum of highway noise just off the tree line and thieves are using major highways to their advantage; in and out of a neighborhood in a matter of minutes, often leaving with someone’s luxury vehicle.
More New Jersey News
The suspects were all 19 years old or younger and from Newark. The two youngest are just 14 and 16 years old.
Lt. Elliot Colon’s squad noticed the teens driving the tinted Benz extraordinarily slow in Paramus and ran the plates. When the cops tried to pull over the vehicle, the teens bolted.
“There was nowhere to hide that night,” said Lt. Colon. “The car was completely surrounded. A lot of these car theft crews operate out of Newark. Some of them are very good drivers. You would think, ‘Oh, 14, 15, as soon as he gets into a high-end Mercedes or BMW, he’s going to crash. He’s not going to be used to doing 120, 130 miles an hour.’ You’d be surprised. These kids learn to drive very quickly at a young age, and very well.”
The same can’t be said for their success rate getting away on foot.
All five teens were chased down, taken into custody, and now face various criminal charges, including aggravated assault, receiving stolen property, and resisting arrest.
Teenagers caught fleeing after car theft attempt in Paramus
by: Jay DowPosted: Feb 17, 2025 / 05:51 PM EST
Updated: Feb 17, 2025 / 05:51 PM EST
SHARE
PARAMUS, N.J. (PIX11) — A dash cam video recorded around 3 a.m. Sunday shows one teenager after another hopping out of a stolen white Mercedes Benz and then over a guardrail along the Garden State Parkway.
The teens were trying to escape from cops after police say the driver rammed not one, but two police vehicles while trying to get away. None of it worked.
More: Latest News from Around the Tri-State
This is not a new trend. Paramus residents know all too well how often thieves try to steal vehicles here and in other northern New Jersey suburbs.
In fact, PIX11 News rode along with the Paramus PD for PIX11 Community Closeup last November, when residential auto thefts were trending downward for 2024.
But criminals don’t take a winter break, and police officials say they’ve already logged 8 stolen vehicles this year.
“I know in the past, this has been the area close the parkway here, where we’ve seen more car thefts,” said Paramus resident Tobin Jacob.
By all accounts, this is a little slice of suburban paradise, one of many blocks in Bergen County. But what our mic hasn’t picked up is the low hum of highway noise just off the tree line and thieves are using major highways to their advantage; in and out of a neighborhood in a matter of minutes, often leaving with someone’s luxury vehicle.
More New Jersey News
The suspects were all 19 years old or younger and from Newark. The two youngest are just 14 and 16 years old.
Lt. Elliot Colon’s squad noticed the teens driving the tinted Benz extraordinarily slow in Paramus and ran the plates. When the cops tried to pull over the vehicle, the teens bolted.
“There was nowhere to hide that night,” said Lt. Colon. “The car was completely surrounded. A lot of these car theft crews operate out of Newark. Some of them are very good drivers. You would think, ‘Oh, 14, 15, as soon as he gets into a high-end Mercedes or BMW, he’s going to crash. He’s not going to be used to doing 120, 130 miles an hour.’ You’d be surprised. These kids learn to drive very quickly at a young age, and very well.”
The same can’t be said for their success rate getting away on foot.
All five teens were chased down, taken into custody, and now face various criminal charges, including aggravated assault, receiving stolen property, and resisting arrest.
