Repair scam breaks down in Monmouth

Two alleged fugitives on the run, stopping to pose as repairmen, reach a dead end in Monmouth County.

Luke Ely, 22, and Thomas Nicholas, 41, both of Elizabeth, appeared on the radar of Ocean Township police on March 16, when they allegedly took $450 from a Route 35 Italian specialty storekeeper, under the guise of repairing kitchen equipment in the shop.

After Ely was identified, investigators learned that he had been a suspect in similar incidents and was the subject of a no-bail fugitive warrant in Pennsylvania, and warrants issued by the East Hanover Municipal Court and Morris County Sheriff's Office.

Nicholas was identified later by the investigating team. Authorities said he faces arrest warrants in North Plainfield and in West Shores Municipal Court in Pennsylvania.

Ocean Township police say they resurfaced March 29 in Neptune Township, attempting the same ruse, and were arrested without incident.

Both were charged with theft by deception and being fugitives from justice. Nicholas faces added counts of possession of heroin and paraphernalia.

They were lodged in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in Freehold. Bail for Ely was set at $5,000; for Nicholas, $10,000.