Fair Lawn Police Apprehend Alleged Serial Burglar

A man spotted lugging two large bags away from on Wagaraw Road Sunday afternoon has been arrested and charged in multiple area burglaries, said.

In addition to burglary and theft charges for Sunday's incident, Verler M. McEachin, 50, of Paterson, faces burglary and theft charges for an earlier theft from Montone Construction as well as an August theft from Dell Landscaping on Wagaraw Road.

The security officer at the Fair Lawn Industrial Park, whose security booth faces Montone Construction, called police around 4 p.m. Sunday to report a theft after observing the suspect walking away from Montone Construction carrying two large bags, police said.

As the suspect continued walking north with the bags on Wagaraw, police said the security official -- a retired North Bergen police officer -- followed closely behind. After confronting the suspect near the driveway of a residence on Pomona Avenue, the suspect dropped the bags and fled on foot toward the Lincoln Avenue bridge, police said.

Police dispatched five officers to the area to investigate and five others to assist. The responding officers established a perimeter with the help of the Hawthorne Police Department and the County Police, and soon located the suspect, identified as McEachin, on 2nd Avenue near East 23rd Street in Paterson, police said.

Proceeds of the alleged burglary that were recovered by police include $795 in power tools from the discarded bags, and a 26-inch television and several other power tools left at the scene, police said.

McEachin, whom police say has been linked to burglaries in neighboring towns, also faces charges in Hawthorne. 

He was taken to Bergen County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail

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