SP Police Charge Man Wanted for Vehicle Burglaries

Scotch Plains police have charged a man, who was wanted in connection with several recent vehicle burglaries.

Rodney Cauthen, 46, of Plainfield, was arrested Sunday morning when he was found entering a garage on Sleepy Hollow Lane in Scotch Plains.

Around 7 a.m. that morning, Plainfield police received a report that an individual was walking around looking into vehicles parked in driveways on Sleepy Hollow Lane in Plainfield.

Plainfield police responded to the call and found Cauthen in the garage over the Scotch Plains border, where they arrested him.

Scotch Plains Police Lt. Brian Donnelly said that Cauthen was charged with the crime on Monday. He is now being held at Union County Jail on $57,000 bail.

"We charged him with breaking into two cars and criminal trespass," Donnelly said. "As of now, we don't have him tied to anybody else."

Donnelly said that because there's been an increase in reports recently of home and vehicle burglaries, Scotch Plains police have stepped up their patrol in both marked and unmarked vehicles. They've also been working closely with Plainfield police because a lot of the crimes have been happening on the border of the two towns.

Donnelly said the vehicles that have been broken into in Scotch Plains had at least one door unlocked. The vehicles broken into in Plainfield had their windows smashed.

"We ask the public, don't keep valuables in your car, make sure the doors are locked," Donnelly said. "If you see anything suspicious, give us a call. We take these types of crimes very seriously."

The Scotch Plains police can be reached at 908-322-7100.