Weehawken police are still investigating a scary armed robbery early Wednesday morning on Boulevard East in which a resident was awoken in his bed by two armed robbers who bound and gagged the man and held him against his will for three hours while they ransacked his apartment.
According to Deputy Police Chief Robert DelPriore, the incident is still being heavily investigated, but it is not considered a random act of violence.
"We believe the entire thing was a set-up," DelPriore said. "There seems to be a connection between the victim and the perpetrators. It’s certainly not a random break-in. We have some good leads and we’re pursuing those leads."
According to the police reports, the resident, whose name has been withheld by his request, said he was awoken by two men who were standing on his bed at approximately 12:15 a.m. Wednesday morning.
The two men allegedly then pulled a gun on the victim, then bound, blindfolded and gagged him while they took valuable paintings off the wall. They also took cash and jewelry, he said.
The victim, who did not contact the Weehawken police until 26 hours after the attack took place, told investigators that he did not remember whether he had locked the door of his apartment, on an affluent Boulevard East stretch that overlooks the Manhattan skyline.
There were no signs whatsoever of forced entry, according to DelPriore.
"He was afraid to call the police because he thought they would come back," said the victim’s neighbor, who also requested anonymity. "He never got a chance to see the people in his apartment because they put a blindfold over his eyes. They told him that if he said anything, they would kill him. He’s very upset by the whole thing. He’s just happy that he’s alive."
While the victim didn’t call the police until 2:10 a.m. Thursday morning, he did manage to call his credit card companies to report the theft, as well as contacting his lawyer, DelPriore said.
The neighbor said that he didn’t hear a thing, because if he heard a disturbance, he would have called the police.
"I didn’t know about it until the next morning," the neighbor said.
Taking it seriously
Weehawken Public Safety Director Jeff Welz said that the incident is not being taken lightly.
"We’re taking it very seriously," Welz said. "This is a legitimate crime and there should be concern, because a resident was accosted in his house. But we’re pretty sure that it was not a random act. However, the police can’t do their work properly if they lose 24 hours in the investigation because it wasn’t reported. Incidents like this have to be reported immediately. But we’re pursuing this as a very serious crime."
The armed robbery is the third crime-related incident on the same block in the last month, although both Welz and DelPriore both stated that the incidents are "so unrelated that it’s not even funny," DelPriore said.
"There are three separate incidents," Welz said. "All three were different types of crimes and not associated with each other."
Recent burglaries
One female resident came home from work three weeks ago to find items of precious jewelry were taken from her first-floor apartment after someone apparently gained entry to her apartment by breaking a front window. That’s considered a burglary.
"They totally overturned everything," said the woman, who also requested anonymity. "The whole house was tossed. They had to spend a while in here because they opened every pocketbook I owned, every drawer of the closets, and emptied everything. It was pretty upsetting."
In a different incident, a resident called police to report her laptop computer was missing from her apartment after she had guests over. This was considered a larceny.
"If there is no sign of a forced entry, then it’s a larceny," Welz said. "It’s a robbery when forced entry is used. But this latest incident, there are other factors involved that we are investigating."
The incidents have the neighbors very concerned.
"I have huge fear and concerns," said the woman who was robbed. "I live alone. I’m a businesswoman and I’m not here all the time. I’ve lived here for six years and haven’t felt this way before. But there’s a fear factor now on the Boulevard. My biggest concern is that there doesn’t seem to be protection. I always felt safe before, but I don’t now."
The neighbor of the latest victim also feels unsafe.
"We’re all frightened," the neighbor said. "Imagine waking up and finding someone on your bed with a gun to your head. People should be on alert that these things are happening. People are afraid of calling the police. Some other people haven’t said anything. I can imagine that older people are also afraid."
The neighbor said that he contacted his landlord, who was in London at the time of the incident, and there will be a metal gate installed at the brownstone duplex to provide more safety.
However, Welz reiterated that the latest incident had no signs of being a random act.
"If it was a random act, then I would understand the concerns," Welz said. "But this appears to be very different."
"We have some very good leads and we’re going to act quickly on those," DelPriore said.