UPDATE: Police Recover $15,000; Make Three Arrests

CAPE MAY BEACH — More charges were levied and an additional arrest was made in a Villas theft ring.
On Dec. 28 at approximately 9:30 p.m., Patrol Officer Jennifer Anzelone responded to a report of suspicious activity in the area of 2705 Shore Drive here.
A neighbor in the area reported seeing a suspicious white male walking in the area of a construction site along with a pick-up truck that seemed strange to the area.
Anzelone conducted a check of the area and discovered a construction trailer on site had the lock cut off and it appeared that items may have been taken from inside. Contact with the builder Edward Mascia confirmed that approximately $2,500 in construction equipment had been taken from the trailer.
Further investigation and development of leads at the scene led to the identification and arrests of two white male suspects — Darien Rogers, 37, from Oakdale Avenue, Villas, and Charles Conner Jr., 34, Millman Lane, Villas.
In addition to the items taken from Shore Drive, approximately $15,000 in construction and lawn care equipment was also recovered. These additional items are also thought to be stolen from various locations and the investigation into ownership of the items is on going and additional charges are pending the outcome.
Both Rodgers and Conner were charged with burglary and theft and taken to the Cape May County Correctional Center in default of $25,000.00 cash bail.
Following additional investigation, Rogers and Conner were charged with an additional three counts of theft from incidents reported over the past three months at various locations in Villas.
Also arrested was John Rietheimer, 43, of Erma, who was charged with five counts of conspiracy to commit theft and five counts of receiving stolen property. He was placed in county jail on $50,000 bail.
The incident was investigated by Anzelone, Officer Shaun Whittington and Detective Chris Lambert.