A suspect who returned to the scene of a burglary for which he had been charged in 2012 allegedly burglarized the same home in 2013, said Police Chief Ralph Scianni. A police detective apprehended Juan Aguilar, 30, of Bayonne while he was allegedly attempting another burglary on Dec. 5 in the midtown area.
During the search of Aguilar, police allegedly found had a piece of jewelry that was reported stolen in a rash of burglaries dating back to Halloween 2013, Scianni said.
“Ironically, the victim was the same woman that was the victim of a burglary he was charged for in 2012,” Scianni said. “He [allegedly] went back to the same house he [allegedly] burglarized in 2012 and for which he was out on bail.”
Scianni said Aguilar was a suspect in a series of home burglaries that took place from late October until his arrest on Dec. 5 when an undercover police detective spotted him.
“The officer was in the middle of a background check when he saw [Aguilar allegedly] trying to commit another burglary in the area of 17th Street and Broadway,” Scianni said. “A search subsequent to the arrest found a piece of jewelry the woman identified from an earlier burglary.”
Aguilar has been charged in 12 incidents: seven counts of burglary and theft, and five counts of attempted burglary.
He was previously arrested in November, 2012, for a number of burglaries throughout the city and was on bail for those pending charges at the time of his re-arrest on Dec. 5.
Scianni said Aguilar was also wearing a monitoring anklet issued by the Immigrant Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) at the time of his arrest.
“We believe he [allegedly] worked the areas primarily from 14th to 18th Streets,” Scianni said, noting that the current batch of burglaries started around Halloween.
“We had identified him as a suspect and issued warrants,” Scianni said. “Then one of our plain- clothes detectives driving around spotted him. He did not recognize the officer and then [allegedly] tried to commit another burglary.”
Scianni said in light of the new arrest, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s office will likely review both sets of charges from 2012 and 2013.
Scianni said some of the items reported stolen in some of the burglaries have been recovered.
This is the second arrest for multiple crimes the Bayonne Police Department made recently. Last month, the police department arrested three people, one adult and two youths, in connection with the break-in or theft of motor vehicles in the uptown area.
“These kinds of investigations are labor intensive,” Scianni said. “Our detectives are continuing their investigations around the clock.”
Woman dies after plunge from a window
A 52-year-old woman who apparently leaped out of the window of a West 15th Street building on December 5 died from her injuries at Jersey City Medical Center at about 7:42 a.m. on Dec.6.
“The matter is still under investigation by the Hudson County Medical Examiner,” Scianni said. “We don’t yet know the details behind the situation. But this is a tough time of year for some people.”
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.