Man with record of stealing packages from porches in Bayonne strikes again: police

A Bayonne man with a history of stealing packages from people's porches has been arrested after being caught in the act yet again, according to Bayonne police.

Yesterday at 3:34 p.m., an off-duty Bayonne police officer saw Damien L. Baker, 45, removing a package from the porch of a home on Avenue A in Bayonne, Bayonne police Lt. Janine Foy said.

While walking away from the home, Baker opened the package, took out an energy drink that was inside, discarded the packaging and continued on his way, Foy said.

The officer, who was familiar with Baker from previous arrests, then arrested him for theft, she said.

Upon searching Baker, the officer found items that police believe to be from other people's packages, including a sweatshirt with a tag still on it and a pair of earrings, Foy said. It's not known who those items belong to, she said.

While Baker was in custody, the officer also discovered that he had an outstanding warrant for a theft reported Nov. 14 by another Bayonne resident living on Avenue A, whose package was also stolen.

In that incident, the homeowner had a security camera that captured footage of Baker removing the package, which police used to obtain a warrant, Foy said.

Baker was charged with two counts of theft and taken to the Hudson County jail in Kearny on a $15,000 bail with a 10 percent option. He made his first court appearance today at Central Judicial Processing in Jersey City.

Foy said he was arrested four separate times in Bayonne between January and March this year for taking packages off people's porches.

Baker did not steal from any one neighborhood in Bayonne, Foy said, adding that one theft took place on 35th Street, another one took place midtown on Avenue C and two took place "all the way" downtown.

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Man with record of stealing packages from porches in Bayonne strikes again: police