The Lodi Police Department received a telephone call about a suspicious person ringing doorbells and attempting to gain entry through front doors of homes in the Grove Street area of this borough on Oct. 4th at approximately 11:54 a.m.
The caller was able to give a clear description of the alleged actor to assist police on their arrival.
When police arrived at the residence of 229 Grove Street, it was discovered that a front window was open, there were smudges on the window sill, and the screen had been removed and hidden, along with a bicycle in the shrubbery in front of the home, giving suspicion to responding officers that this was, in fact, a burglary in progress.
While Sergeant Frank Debartola, Officer Ana Martinez, Officer Andelson Mindest, Officer Ahmet Kulaksiz, Officer Richard Cordero and Officer Derek Morrison converged on the home, contact was made with the son of the homeowner, who provided the garage access code to officers, who then made entry and searched the home with Lieutenant Joseph Pless and K9 Officer Gagliostro of the Bergen County Bureau of Police Services standing by in front of the home with his K9 partner.
During the search, Daniel M. Strug, was located hiding in a bedroom closet on the north side of the home. Suspect was then searched and placed under arrest for a multitude of charges and transported to headquarters by Detective Marinus Keyzer.
Initially, Strug would not provide law enforcement officers with his pedigree information and when prompted, Strug gave a verbal false identification. Once Strug’s identity was determined, he thereby faced additional charges of hindering apprehension. His bail was set at $25,000 and Strug was transported to the Bergen County Jail.