The officer approached the vehicle and conducted an investigation with a subject inside the vehicle. The investigation revealed that the subject in the vehicle and another male were in the area attempting to commit burglaries of unoccupied vacation rental homes. The officer requested the Ocean City K-9 Unit and Ptl. John Vogt to respond to the location so a search could be conducted for the other subject involved.
Ptl. Vogt and the K-9 were able to track the second subject to a home in the 4700 block of West Avenue where he was discovered hiding in the crawlspace of the house.
The investigation revealed that the subject had attempted to enter several homes in the area with the intent to steal electronic equipment and other items of value. Both subjects were taken into custody and brought to the police station for follow up investigation by the Detective Bureau.
Information was obtained that these subjects had been involved with burglaries of homes in the south end of Ocean City between November 2009 and February 2010. Recovered during the investigation were ten flat panel televisions of various sizes, makes and models, two laptop computers, along with other electronic devices.
Owners have been identified for some of the recovered items. It is believed that at least 30 homes have been entered by the individuals.
The Police Department requests that property owners should check on their homes to determine if they may have been a victim of these most recent burglaries. The homes may not show any signs of obvious forced entry due to the nature of the crimes. If you believe that your home has been burglarized please contact the police immediately.
Arrested and charged on a warrant issued by Judge Richard Russell, JMC, is Christopher W. Dettloff, age 18, of Corbin City, NJ. Bail was set at $50,000 full cash. Also charged on a juvenile complaint is a 17-year-oldof Woodbine, NJ. The investigation was conducted by members of Patrol Squad Three, K-9 Officer John Vogt and "Deuce", the Detective Bureau and assisting agencies Sea Isle City Police and Egg Harbor Twp. Police.
