Police Arrest Westfield Resident for Car Thefts

Westfield Police arrested a 19-year old resident Friday for theft from vehicles on the south side.

Police Captain Clifford Auchter said that Akeem Noray was arrested after police received a call of an individual looking into numerous cars parked in the area of Park Street and Summit Avenue. Upon responding to the scene, police found Noray, who met the description provided to police.

Noray is accused of fleeing the scene on foot and later being found in the back yard of a home on the 600 block of Boulevard. Auchter said Noray is accused of holding property belonging to a resident on the 600 block of Boulevard at the time of his arrest.

Noray has been charged with burglary, theft, receiving stolen property and resisting arrest. He was transported to the Union County jail in lieu of $25,000. The case has been turned over to the county prosecutor for prosecution.

The arrest comes a week after a report of an unlocked car on the north side of town being broken into in the driveway of a private residence. The owner of the car reports that a mink coat was stolen in that case. It is not known if there is a connection between the two cases.

The car theft arrest comes after a string of home burglaries around town over the past year. Most of the home burglaries have been centered in north side and south side neighborhoods near major highways including Route 22 and the Garden State Parkway.