Police News

Jewelry Recovered in Newtown Burglary, Police Say

Newtown Township Police are asking residents to be on the look out for suspicious behavior.

Newtown Township Police suspect the two men recently charged in connection with Marple Township burglaries are also responsible for Newtown's recent burglaries, police say.  People forced their way inside two locked, unoccupied houses. One on N. Newtown Street Road on March 1 and another on Wyola Drive on March 4, according to Newtown Police Chief Christopher Lunn. Jewelry was stolen from the master bedrooms at both houses, according to Lunn, and other similar residential burglaries have occurred in neighboring townships during the last several weeks. While the police officers were investigating the March 4 Wyola Drive burglary, Marple Police responded to a burglary in progress and were able to arrest two men from Delaware who are …

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Police: Residential Burglary Reported on Boot Road

Newtown police warn residents to be on alert of any suspicious person(s) or activities in light of a few recent burglaries that has occurred in Newtown Square.

NEWTOWN SQUARE–The following information has been provided by Newtown Township Police Chief Chris Lunn. On Tuesday, Jan. 22, Newtown police investigated a residential burglary on Boot Road. An unknown actor(s) forced entry through the front door of the unoccupied home. Once inside, they went to the master bedroom and stole jewelry.  Neighboring townships have also experienced similar burglaries during the last two weeks.  A common tactic used by these types of burglars is to find a house where it appears that no one is home and knock on the front door. If no one answers the front door, they go to a back door and knock on that door. If no one answers they force entry into the house, go to the master bedroom and look for jewelry.  If someone…

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JDBroomall

1:06 pm on Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Deborah: I've seen your comments... "Actor" is a legal term that goes back almost 3000 years in Roman law around 800BC. Don't confuse it with a TV actor. Anyways... the persons in these stories are not "criminals", they are suspects. Until proven guilty in a court of law, all suspects actors are innocent.   more ›

February Crime Stats and Updates in Marple

Marple Police Chief Tom Murray gave an update on recent police incidents and updates for the month of February.

BROOMALL–"Quiet little Marple isn’t always so quiet," stated Marple Police Chief Tom Murray at a Marple Township Board of Commissioners meeting on Monday night. According to Murray, during the month of February, there were 23 thefts and five burglaries. "Again, burglaries are a huge concern across the county. Just last week, Newtown Township [police] made an arrest when a resident observed someone trying to get into her house. She called police, and it took them two hours in the muddy Thursday afternoon to get the guy." The home burglar, identified as Larry Samuel, 32, of Darby, was arrested and faces 41 charges, including charges he allegedly made in a home burglary on Gradyville Road in Marple on Feb. 14, according to Murray. Samuel is …

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Update: More Home Burglaries Continue In Newtown

Newtown Township Police Department released a statement that a total of seven home burglaries have been investigated in the past couple of weeks around Newtown and Marple townships.

NEWTOWN SQUARE–Newtown Township Police Lt. Chris Lunn recently released a statement regarding the number of home burglaries that have been occuring around Newtown and Marple townships. Last week, Lunn sent out a release about the home burglaries that occurred during the day on Feb. 22-23. Since then, police have investigated two more home burglaries. According to Lunn, the number of home burglaries now total to seven over the past couple of weeks in the township and by the border of Marple township. "All of the burglaries occurred during the day when the homeowners were at work and no one was home. The actor(s) used force to enter the homes.  Some of the homes were ransacked and others were not," stated Lunn in the statement. Many of the …

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Police: Burglaries On The Rise Around Town

Newtown Township Police issued out a statement regarding the rise of home burglaries around town.

NEWTOWN SQUARE–A number of burglaries or attempted burglaries have been reported around the Marple Newtown area, according to the Newtown Township Police Department. Newtown police Lt. Chris Lunn issued out a statement on Friday in regards to the number of recent burglary incidents reported. On Thursday, Feb. 23, Newtown police investigated one attempted burglary and two burglaries, in which valuable electronic items were stolen from residents' homes, that occurred during the day on Feb. 22 and Feb. 23.  According to the release, the attempted burglary was discovered when the homeowner discovered what appeared to be tire tracks from the driveway into the rear yard.  "Upon police arrival it appeared the actor(s) pulled a vehicle behind the …

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2011: Over 16,000 Emergency Calls Made, 13% Increase in Crime in Marple

Marple Police Chief Tom Murray presented an overview crime incidents recap of 2011 and recent crime activity in the township.

BROOMALL–"For 2011 for the year, we answered 16,310 calls for service–that's about a 3.5 percent increase over the previous year and it's a trend that we keep going up year after year," announced Marple Police Chief Tom Murray before the Board of Commissioners at a work session meeting on Monday night. Murray said crime was up 13 percent in 2011 in comparison to 2010. "I think it's finally catching up to us," shared Murray. "With the economy being the way it has, we've held our own for the first couple of years but we're finally seeing that increase." Some good news of 2011: Marple Police Department will receive a $55,000 check for reimbursement for billing of fingerprints. "We have amassed enough money in that account–it's a separate …

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Two Juveniles Charged with 41 Thefts from Vehicles

Meanwhile, burglaries are on the rise in the township, announced Marple Police Chief Tom Murray at a commissioners' work session meeting on Dec. 5.

BROOMALL–Marple Township Police have arrested and charged two juveniles in connection with 41 thefts from vehicles in Marple Township, Marple Police Chief Thomas Murray Jr. told the Marple Board of Commissioners on Monday night. The arrests were made on Saturday, Dec. 3, Murray said. One of the juveniles was from Marple and the other was from Newtown Township, Murray said. Numerous thefts from vehicles have been occuring in both Marple and Newtown townships. So far this year, Marple Township has had 82 thefts from vehicles, Murray said. “So we’ve cleared half of them,” Murray said, referring to the two juveniles who have been accused of 41 of the incidents. But the thefts from cars have not stopped, Murray said. During the past weekend at …

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Police Capture Thief Involved in Newtown Square Pizza and Fresco Pizza and Grill Burglaries

Newtown Police Chief Dennis Anderson announced at a Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday, Sept. 26, that one of the thieves involved in 30 burglaries around Delaware, Montgomery and Chester counties and the state of Delaware has been arrested.

NEWTOWN SQUARE–At a Newtown Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday evening, Newtown Police Chief Dennis Anderson announced before the board and the public of a recent arrest that occurred involving the Newtown Square Pizza and Fresco Pizza & Grill burglaries. In early May of this year, Newtown Square Pizza was "burglarized and an undisclosed amount of money was taken," said Anderson. The pizza shop, located off of Route 3/West Chester Pike, was broken into and cash, a register drawer and safe were all taken from the store. The shop's *video surveillance camera showed two men fully clothed with masks, breaking the glass of the front door to enter into the store. The video assisted authorities in eventually leading to the arrest of the thief…

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Rain Keeps Crime Away in Marple For August

The inclement August weather may have reduced criminal activity in the township, according to Marple Police Chief Tom Murray.

BROOMALL–The rain may have slowed crime in Marple Township last month, but the burglary rate so far this year remains a concern, Marple Police Chief Thomas Murray Jr. told the Marple Township Board of Commissioners at a meeting on Monday night. Murray said August was a “good month” in terms of low crime.  A total of 69 crimes were reported for the month, Murray said. “I guess all the rain we had kept people off the streets,” Murray said. But one thing that concerns Murray is the number of amount of burglaries occurring in the township. There were five burglaries reported in August and there have been a total of 27 burglaries so far this year, which already exceeds the total number of burglaries reported in 2010, Murray said. The Marple …

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Marple Police Chief: Drug Arrests, Burglaries Way Up

Drug arrests and burglaries for the first six months of 2011 are nearly at 2010's totals. The new emergency services building was also discussed at the Board of Commissioners meeting on June 13.

BROOMALL–On Monday night at the Marple Township Board of Commissioners regular meeting, Marple police chief Tom Murray warned the board that burglaries and drug arrests have risen sharply in the area in the past year. Murray said that there have already been 15 burglaries and 38 drug arrests through May of this year, compared to 17 and 42 for all of 2010. The chief added that their concurrent rise is no coincidence, as theft is one of the two crimes most closely associated with drug use. Murray said marijuana and heroin seem to be the drug of choice for Marple's mostly young drug users. The latter has been especially problematic in the township, where there have been nine overdoss deaths since 2006, and roughly 20 instances where there was…

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