Crime & Safety

'Please Hurry:' Text Tip Leads to Arrests, Cops Say

The following arrest information was supplied by the Morris Township police department. It does not indicate a conviction.

A Crime Stoppers text tip led to two summonses and two arrests, including that of a Morris Township teen, police said.

Capt. Rich Ferrone of the said a text tip on the evening of June 26 alerted police to the presence of four people outside a vacant home on Irondale Avenue. A second text message, asking police to “please hurry,” was also received, Ferrone said.

When police arrived, they found four men in the backyard of the vacant home and detected the smell of burning marijuana, Ferrone said

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Two men attempted, unsuccessfully, to flee the scene, Ferrone said. One later admitted to possessing a bag of what was suspected to be marijuana, Ferrone said. 

Kevin Monsalve, 20, of Greenville, South Carolina, was arrested on charges of possessing less than 50 grams of marijuana and obstruction of justice. The second man who allegedly attempted to flee the scene, Alejandro Gallego, 18, of Morris Township, was arrested on a charge of obstruction of justice. 

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

The other two men on the scene, Juan Giraldo, 20, of Morristown and Andres Arbelaez, 18, of Lake Hiawatha, were issued summonses for alleged trespassing, police said.

If you have any questions about this post, please contact kathy.shaskan@patch.com.


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