A Jersey City man was caught stealing two shipping containers of merchandise from the Home Deport near the Holland Tunnel on Friday, police said.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
John Thatcher, 43, of Jersey City, was charged two counts of shoplifting and possession of a hypodermic needle, according to Port Authority police spokesman Joe Pentangelo.
At about 11 p.m. on Friday, plainclothes a Port Authority police officer saw the suspect run across the parking lot of a 7-11 convenience store near the Holland Tunnel, authorities said.
The suspect was pushing an orange Home Depot shopping cart containing 2 shipping containers. Police saw the suspect unload the two containers from the shopping cart and throw them over a low brick wall into the Dunkin Donuts parking lot at 215 14th St., officials said.
The containers flew open as they hit the ground and the contents of the containers fell and the items spilled onto the ground of the parking lot. Officers then confronted the suspect, who was unable to provide a receipt for the items, police said.
Home Depot personnel arrived at the parking lot and identified the property and the shopping cart as Home Depot property and informed police that Thatcher had indeed not paid for the items, authorities said.
He was placed under arrest, where he was also found to be in possession of a hypodermic syringe. Thatcher also had an active no-bail arrest warrant from Jersey City, officials said.
