Suspect arrested in rash of car burglaries
BY CHRISTINE VARNO Staff Writer

LONG BRANCH - City police have charged at least one man with burglarizing cars in the community, which is a crime that has been on the rise for the past two months, according to a press release from the department.

Police arrested Vincent Thoms, 32, of Liberty Street, Oct. 9 after a concerned citizen reported that a suspicious man was peeking into car windows at approximately 1:40 a.m. on Ludlow Street.

Thoms is charged with approximately 31 car burglaries and was found to be in possession of proceeds from the burglaries at the time of his arrest, according to the press release.

Further investigation by police into the case linked Thoms to several car burglaries within the city, according to the release.

Long Branch Police Officer Joseph Kennedy located a male fitting the reported description near Sixth Avenue. As Kennedy approached the man, who was later identified as Thoms, the accused allegedly dropped a large amount of loose change on the ground and began to run, according to the release.

Kennedy apprehended Thoms after a brief foot pursuit, according to the release.

"Long Branch has been plagued with a rash of car burglaries within the past two months," said Sgt. Fernando Sander in the press release. "The majority of the vehicles were left unlocked. The car burglaries spanned from the Elberon section to the northern borders."

He added that proceeds from the burglaries included iPods, cameras, cash and credit cards.

Thoms' bail was set at $65,000 with no 10 percent option and he was transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in Freehold.