N.J. cops arrest robbery suspect after tracking him with a drone

Hamilton police officers arrested a robbery suspect by using a drone that allowed them to see that he’d fled into Trenton, the department said.
Richard G. Halley, 54, faces robbery, burglary, theft and criminal mischief charges for the 10:10 p.m. incident on Monday, Nov. 18, which started in the 300 block of Whitehead Road.
The department received a call that a man wearing a ski mask had kicked in the door of a detached garage. When the caller confronted the intruder, the masked man pushed past the person with several stolen items, police Lt. Kristin Seitz said.
When officers got to the scene, the caller told them the man fled west toward the Assunpink Creek. Officers had the UAV Unit put a drone in the air to assist them in a search of the area, Seitz said. (Drones are also called unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs).
Officers first found the suspect in the area of Mulberry Street in Trenton, but he refused to stop and entered the Delaware & Raritan Canal State Park Trail, Seitz said.
UAV officers found the suspect and tracked him as he ran across U.S. Route 1 and headed south. They relayed the suspect’s location to police officers, who eventually caught up with Halley on Fuld Street. They put him in handcuffs without further incident, Seitz said.
“The UAV Unit was instrumental in locating the suspect,” she said.
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Kevin Shea may be reached at [email protected].