Someone’s got a sweet tooth
A Jersey City resident was charged with shoplifting and bail jumping after a ShopRite employee caught him allegedly stealing 20 value packs of Trident gum and 48 chocolate bars earlier this month, according to a police report.
Christopher Bitetti, 43, of Montgomery Avenue, was spotted by the store’s loss prevention officer allegedly sticking the gum and candy into the chest area of his coat, the report said. When the officer confronted Bitetti as he was attempting to exit the store, Bitteti allegedly made no effort to pay for the items and was escorted to a holding room while the police were called.
The total value of the gum and candy allegedly taken was $103, including tax, the report said. The items included value packs of various flavors of Trident gum, including watermelon, Tropical Twist, and Mint Bliss. The Hershey bars were of the almond variety.
When police interviewed Bitetti at the ShopRite, the report said, he was apparently very nauseous and was vomiting. It’s unclear if his sickness was related to the alleged theft. Bitetti was transferred to Hoboken University Medical Center.
Police filed an additional bail jumping charge against Bitetti when they found that he allegedly failed to appear in court on warrants issued in Bayonne and Hasbrouck Heights.
Three on one… and one wins
Two Hoboken brothers and a friend visiting from out of town were apparently knocked to the ground when a fight broke out between the younger brother and an unknown assailant outside a Washington Street bar early last Sunday morning, according to a police report.
When police arrived on the scene just before 2 a.m., they spotted one of the men, later identified as the out-of-town friend, lying in the intersection of Fourteenth and Washington Streets next to a puddle of what appeared to be blood, the report said. The man was holding a cloth to the back of his head.
According to the older brother, who also was bleeding from the back of the head, he and his friend were inside the bar when they looked outside and noticed the younger brother involved in a physical altercation. The younger brother was heavily intoxicated, the report said, and according to witnesses was struggling with a male wearing jeans and a black t-shirt.
The older brother and the friend then ran outside to help, when they were both struck in the face causing them to fall to the ground backwards, the report said. At this point the assailant took off in an unknown direction.
As police were questioning the brothers, the younger one had to be placed in handcuffs as he was receiving medical attention because he was being disruptive to the officers as they were trying to gather information. He was later released from his restraints and brought to Hoboken University Medical Center along with his brother and friend. No charges were filed.
Not-so-welcome homecoming
A Madison Street resident returned from a business trip last week to find the door to his apartment ajar, the lights on, and his $1,500 laptop computer stolen, according to a police report.
The man, who left his apartment around 8 a.m. on Feb. 6, told police that he immediately knew something was amiss because he distinctly recalled locking his door on the way out and said that certain things in the apartment had been moved or tampered with.
In addition to the computer, a 15-inch Apple Macbook Pro, $250 in cash and $50 in coins were stolen from the apartment, which was on the second of seven floors.
During their investigation, police found no fingerprints or signs of forced entry. They did note, however, that a staircase leading from the backyard to the second floor was a probable route of entry. Upon further investigation, officers noticed an overturned trash can next to a fence separating the backyard from the neighboring property. The police noticed footprints in the snow on the other side of the fence, which was bent as if someone had climbed over it.