Carjacker Caught After Chase, 1 Still Sought, Cops Say

An East Orange man was arrested Monday night in connection with a Bloomfield carjacking that led to a multi-town police chase before ending in West Orange.

Waquint L Crawford, 18, of East Orange, was charged with carjacking, eluding and resisting arrest.

A 20-year-old female Bloomfield resident was carjacked at gunpoint shortly before 11 p.m. Monday on Ampere Parkway, according to a Bloomfield police report.

While responding to the call, Bloomfield Police Officer Sang Yoon spotted the victim’s red 2011, four-door Honda traveling north on Ampere Parkway, police said. Officer Yoon and Officer Robert Kish chased the vehicle to Main Street and Park Avenue in West Orange, where it struck a wall and was disabled, according to a Bloomfield police report.

The occupants fled the vehicle on foot as officers from Bloomfield, West Orange, Orange and the Essex County Sheriff's Department searched for them.

Orange Police Officer Yolanda Williams found Crawford a short distance from the crash scene and placed him under arrest. The victim identified him as one of the two men involved in the carjacking, police said.

Judge John Paparazzo set bail at $150,000 and a May 30 court date.

The second person has not yet been located. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the Bloomfield Police Department Detective Bureau, Detective Sgt. Michael Sisco at 973-680-4092 or Detective Harry Norris at 973-680-4094.