Newark Police Employee Arrested After Burglary, Car Theft Ring Busted: Morris County Prosecutor

Authorities said Friday, July 25 that they had discovered a car theft and burglary ring operating in North Jersey and detained a number of persons, including a civilian employee of the Newark Police Department.

t: Samad Foster, Tyshawn Hoover b: Zayanna Overby, Deeend Coleman Mc-Rae

According to Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll, Union County Prosecutor William Daniel, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens II, Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of Detectives Robert McNally, Florham Park Police Chief Joseph Orlando, and Denville Police Chief Scott Welsch, Tyshawn Hoover, Samad Foster, Deeend Coleman-McRae, Zayanna Overby, a juvenile, and others broke into homes and stole cars in multiple municipalities between September and December 2024.

According to officials, the trio broke into a house in Florham Park and took a key fob before taking a 2023 Land Rover from there in September of last year. According to authorities, Hoover later fenced the Land Rover.

Authorities stated the group stole a Mercedes Benz GLE from West Orange that same day, but they were stopped when they tried to steal a 2022 Honda Civic from a Florham Park residence last November and ran away.

According to police, Foster gave Overby access to the license plates of high-end cars so she could use her civilian employee status at the Newark Police Department to find out which residences were connected to these cars so they could be fenced and stolen.

According to authorities, Hoover, a 24-year-old resident of Newark, is accused of a number of offenses, including conspiracy to commit residential burglary, motor vehicle theft, fencing, receiving stolen motor vehicles, computer criminal activity, and leading an auto theft network.

According to investigators, Coleman-McRae, a 25-year-old resident of Hillside, is accused of receiving stolen motor vehicles, fencing, conspiracy to commit residential burglary, and many narcotics charges.

According to authorities, Overby, a 22-year-old resident of Newark, is accused of a number of crimes, including conspiracy to commit home burglary, motor vehicle theft, fencing, receiving stolen motor vehicles, and computer criminal activity.

According to prosecutors, Foster, a 29-year-old resident of Newark, is accused of conspiring to commit residential burglary, auto theft, fencing, and a host of other charges.

Jameer Smith was also charged with narcotics and weapons offenses after police carried out a search request at a Hillside home and discovered that he and Coleman-McRae were in possession of four firearms, cocaine, and heroin, according to authorities.