Crime & Safety

Potato to the Rescue!

File that one under "headlines we never thought we'd write."

 

Each Monday, Patch takes a peek at some of the more surprising, shocking, stunning and occasionally silly police-related incidents reported throughout New Jersey for "OMGs from NJ PDs." Some of the reports:

The Idea Sounded Half-Baked, But ... The truck's fuel tank had suffered a rip, and fuel was gushing out. But a donation from a nearby homeowner gave firefighters what they needed to get things under control. "We used a potato on the nipple of the fuel tank as a plug," captain from the department said. You say "potato," we say "good thinking."

Find out what's happening in Laceywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Some People Can't Leave Well Enough Alone: Or maybe that's "can't leave bad enough alone." NJ.com reports that a Perth Amboy man had been stopped by police and allegedly given them a fake name. When they handcuffed him and put him in the police car, officers probably expected he'd stay put. But, according to the report, he instead managed to get to the front seat, and started the car, leading police on a chase that got to at least 100 mph. Surprise, surprise ... the incident didn't end well for the Perth Amboy man; police reportedly discharged a weapon to disable the vehicle, then took him into custody ... again.

Also, If I DID Kill Nicole Brown Simpson: . We don't know how many points are on his license, but we'll give him a few points for creativity. The man told the judge that he wasn't the one driving his car when it crashed into another vehicle. But he said if he was the one driving, he wasn't drunk anyway. Police, who tested his blood alcohol level at .18 percent, weren't buying it, and neither was the judge.

Find out what's happening in Laceywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Working Hard for the Money: You ever work really hard at cheating at a test in high school only to realize that if you'd put in the same amount of effort toward studying, you could just pass the test anyway? That's what this report, by Phillyburbs.com, out of Eastampton reminded us of. Police say two women would fish through garbage cans to get discarded receipts, then go to the stores to shoplift the items listed and try to "return" them in exchange for cash. Bad economy or no, at some point, it's got to be easier to just work a few extra hours.

They Say the Problem With Being A Criminal ... Is that you can't call police when you need help. Well, that, and you'll disappoint your mother, who carried you around for nine months and clothed you and fed you and this is the thanks she gets, missy or mister? Parsippany police say they , only to find she had an outstanding traffic warrant, and her car contained glass pipes commonly used to smoke crack cocaine, two hypodermic syringes and four druggist folds.

About this column: "OMGs from NJ PDs" reviews the surprising, stunning and occasionally silly police-related incidents reported by New Jersey Patch sites over the last week.


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