Crime Beat In Bloomfield

It was a busy week for Bloomfield Police, who report making 14 arrests January 22 – 27 for local crimes and outstanding warrants. Two of the arrests were the result of an on-going investigation into local cocaine dealing by BPD and Essex County Sheriff’s office. Here’s what happened:
Officers were working on anonymous tips that drugs were being sold out of Hathaway’s Pub on Broad Street. On January 23 officers arrested Joshua Reubens, 23, of 5 Salter Place, at Hathaway’s. He was carrying six baggies of cocaine. Reubens was charged with several counts of cocaine possession with intent to sell and had an active $1,000 warrant for robbery out of Newark.
On the same night, and also at Hathaway’s, officers arrested Craig Ellis, 25, of 44 Lexington Ave., Montclair. (Coincidence, but not related to the Montclair bust.) Ellis, formerly of Bloomfield, was also charged with several counts of possession of cocaine, and had a $3,000 warrant for probation violation. Reubens and Ellis are in Newark County Jail.
Bloomfield Police Captain Chris Goul also reports two incidents of high school students being robbed, several vehicle break-ins, and this unbelievable story…

Robbery at Gunpoint: Did you ever think you could become vulnerable to a Craig’s List predator? Well, think again:
A Bloomfield man placed an ad on √¢‚Ǩ≈ìCraigslist.com√¢‚Ǩ¬ù to try and sell his PlayStation3. A man interested in buying the PlayStation3 called and made an appointment to come to the seller’s apartment on the 200 block of Bloomfield Avenue on January 22. The potential buyer arrived at 6:30 pm, entered the apartment and negotiated a price. He then said “let me go to my car and get the money.” He walked toward the door to make his way out of the apartment, but suddenly the suspect turned around brandishing a silver and black handgun and took the PlayStation. The suspect is described as a black male, approximately 30 years old, 150 pounds, 5’8″. The victim was alone in the apartment when the robbery occurred. Goul says BPD has checked with Craig’s List, but no similar incidents have been reported. The detective bureau is making headway tracing the suspect’s cell phone number, he said.
Teens Targeted For Robbery: On January 24, a 15 year old high school student was walking to school on Walnut Street near the railroad tracks. At 7:30 am, he heard an older man’s voice behind him. Suddenly, the suspect attacked the teen, demanded money and punched him in the face. Then the assailant reached into the kid’s pockets taking $25. He fled the scene in an unknown direction. The victim was unable to give a description.
Another 15 year old was walking along Bloomfield Avenue near Conger Street, on Jan. 26, around noon. The teen says he was approached by a girl who asked to borrow his cell phone. When he gave it to her she fled the scene. The suspect was described as a young black female around 18 years old.
Theft From Vehicles:
1/22 100 block of West Street. The complainant stated that an unknown person stole the E-Z Pass from off of the front license plate of his vehicle.
1/23 300 block of Broadacres Drive. The complainant stated that an unknown person broke the passenger side window of his vehicle and stole a GPS navigation system.
1/25 600 block of Bloomfield Avenue. The complainant stated that between 7 and 9:30 pm, someone broke the lock out of the driver side door of his vehicle and stole a laptop computer, a Blackberry, an IPOD, and other items.
And if you were wondering about the fire truck at the old Bloomfield Middle School on Jan. 24, police say at 8:47 pm, officers responded to a call discovering a break-in, and that someone had started a small fire. BFD responded and extinguished the fire.