Residents,
I hope everyone enjoyed their summer. I wanted to touch base with everyone to provide a few updates as we move into the new school year and the end of 2023, if you can believe it.
First, I want to applaud our residents and our officers for doing a tremendous job of safeguarding the community during the summer months. Several of our surrounding jurisdictions were being victimized routinely, while Florham Park did suffer some victimization, it was not near the frequency of other jurisdictions. There were three motor vehicles stolen in Florham Park, from June 1st thru August 31st. Two of those vehicles were left unsecured with the key fobs inside the vehicle. Our detectives were successful in identifying, locating and arresting four juveniles involved in one of those thefts. Unfortunately, despite their significant criminal histories, they were all released to their parents. The third motor vehicle theft, and the incident of greatest concern, involved a residential burglary where the vehicle keys were taken from inside the residence. This is another opportunity for the Police Department to reiterate and promote our philosophies of resident vigilance, reporting of any suspicious behavior/persons to the police immediately and to never leave your vehicles unsecured with the keys inside of the same. We, as a community, could have reduced our victimization to one stolen vehicle by simply locking vehicles and removing keys from the same. The third stolen vehicle, resulting from a burglary, is still under investigation.
Early this past Sunday morning, at approximately 3:15am, a resident of Woodcrest Road called to report a home invasion/burglary as two males were attempting to enter their home through the rear doors. A Patrol Officer was on Edgewood Road at the time of the call and responded to the residence within seconds of the call. The homeowners advised the officer they observed two males enter their property, via video surveillance, and attempt to enter the rear of their home. The suspects fled through the rear of the yard as our officer was arriving. A link of the video surveillance is provided below. Luckily, this resident’s home was equipped with outdoor sensor lighting and video surveillance which assisted in alerting the resident to the suspect’s presence. Our officers, who patrol throughout the night, were in close proximity and able to assist in deterring these criminals from being successful at victimizing our residents. Detectives will be following up on the investigation this week in an attempt to identify and locate the suspects.
https://neighbors.ring.com/n/OkmQnBpfbV
We have personnel trained in home security assessments who can provide homeowners with tips necessary to safeguard their homes like the incident detailed above. Simple and inexpensive solutions can help prevent victimization. Contact me at any time, jorlando@fppd.net, to schedule an officer to speak with you about home security assessments.
The 200 Club of Morris County is sponsoring First Responder Day, which is being hosted by Florham Park, on September 23rd at Emmett Field from 3:00pm until 7:00pm. There will be food trucks, live bands, Home Run Derby, Corn Hole Championships and a Closest to the Pin Golf event. The entire event is free for all who attend. Please try to attend and support Morris County’s First Responder community.
The Police Department is planning our Annual Safe Night Out for mischief night. We hope to see all of your children in attendance.
Remember, overall communal safety is everyone’s responsibility. Please remember to obey speed limits, parking rules and traffic safety.
Stay safe!!
Joseph Orlando
Chief of Police
September 18, 2023