A Virginia man is in custody and awaiting extradition to New Jersey, charged with planting a string of false 911 calls centered on a house in Brick Township.

Telephone (Tom Mongelli, Townsquare Media)
Telephone (Tom Mongelli, Townsquare Media)
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According to Brick Township Police, Bruce Ritter, 33, whose last known address was in Ruckersville, VA, was arrested Saturday near a Roanoke homeless shelter.

Ritter faces three counts of stalking, two counts of creating false public alarms, and two counts of violating a final restraining order, police set. He was placed in the Roanoke City Jail, with bail set at $75,000, and no option for release on payment of 10 percent.

Police say the investigation is continuing and that, pending the results, Ritter might be subject to more charges.

According to investigators, the first call arrived on August 25, describing an armed man at a house on Solar Drive, in the Midstreams section. Police found nothing to substantiate it.

However, in the ensuing days, calls continued to arrive describing shootings, officers down, and threats to kill residents and police. The caller hid his identity with technology that blocked originating numbers, police said.

Detectives examining the calls were able to identify Ritter, who was tracked down by Roanoke police.

 

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