Overnight burglary at A&P on 4/16

Middletown Township Police responded to a 6 AM call from a Navesink A&P employee reporting an overnight burglary on Monday, April 16, 2007. Officers Thomas Russo, Ernest Volkland, and Gregory Buhowski, arrived at the supermarket on Route 36 to discover a broken front door, an ATM machine knocked over and pried into, and a dismantled coin machine. Further investigation of the supermarket led officers to discover that a safe had been accessed with the use of a blowtorch, which was lying near the scene of the burglarized safe. Damage to the store’s front office was documented by the police officers, with another safe showing signs of a failed break-in attempt.

A follow-up investigation is in progress by Detective First Class Richard Rast and Detective First Class Adam Finck. Early detective work led them to the Quick Lube Oil Change on Memorial Parkway in Atlantic Highlands, where they discovered another break-in. Acetylene torches were stolen from the Quick Lube Oil Change and used in the A&P burglary.

Undisclosed amounts of money were taken from the A&P ATM machine, the coin machine, and the store’s safe. Detectives Rast and Finck are conducting an ongoing investigation of all incidents.