20-year-old resident caught with stolen property.
By: Al Wicklund
MONROE A Monroe woman was arrested Tuesday and charged with burglary and theft of jewelry stolen from homes on Ashmall Avenue and Drexel Terrace.
Police arrested Shannon Hesdra, 20, of Monmouth Road, and charged her with possession of stolen property. After questioning Ms. Hesdra, police said they added the burglary and theft charges.
Police said Wednesday they have recovered $11,000 worth of some $12,000 in jewelry reported stolen from the Ashmall Avenue house. They said about $3,000 in jewelry was taken from the Drexel Terrace residence.
Entry to the Drexel Terrace home was gained the by the burglar sometime before Sunday when a screen was removed from a window at the rear of the house. No forced entry was used at the Ashmall Avenue home.
Police first learned of the Ashmall Avenue burglary Monday when the resident called to report the theft "in the past couple of days."
Police said that a result of his investigation, Detective Peter Piro learned that Ms. Hesdra had pawned jewelry at the Route 18 Flea Market in East Brunswick on Sunday.
The detective retrieved the jewelry from East Brunswick Sunday and showed it to the Ashmall Avenue-burglary victim. She said the jewelry was not hers.
An inscription on a wedding band brought Detective Piro to the Drexel Terrace residence. The homeowner at that address had just returned from a trip and was not aware her home had been burglarized, but she identified the jewelry as hers.
Tuesday, Detectives Lisa Robinson and Richard Stemming arrested Ms. Hesdra for possession of stolen property on a warrant from East Brunswick .
Police said that, when questioned by the detectives, Ms. Hesdra admitted involvement in both burglaries.
According to police, some of the stolen jewelry was traced to Newark where it was recovered.
After being charged with burglary and theft, Ms. Hesdra was released on $60,000 bail.