Belleville Driver Faces Florida Plate Charge

Fairfield police said a Belleville driver was charged after an automated license plate reader flagged a vehicle carrying a Florida plate reported stolen. The stop happened at about 7:59 a.m. on May 27 in Fairfield, according to a police account published by local outlets. Officer Frank Patierno stopped the vehicle on Route 46 West, and police identified the driver as Paul Almeida, 49, of Belleville. Almeida was charged with receiving stolen property and issued several motor vehicle summonses, police said. ### How did the stop start? Fairfield police said an Automated License Plate Reader alert reached headquarters at about 7:59 a.m. on May 27 after the vehicle entered town using a plate listed as stolen. Police said the plate had been reported stolen on March 16 in Palm Beach County, Florida. (tapinto.net) Route 46 West was where Patierno located the vehicle and carried out the stop with help from other officers, according to the police account. Almeida was the only person in the car, police said. ### What did police say about the Florida plate? Palm Beach County, Florida, was the jurisdiction tied to the stolen-plate report cited by Fairfield police. (tapinto.net) Investigators later concluded that the vehicle’s previous owner had canceled the registration after the sale and that the plate was reported stolen when it was not returned to the motor vehicle agency, according to the police account carried by TAPinto West Essex. Paul Almeida told officers he had bought the car several weeks earlier with the plate already attached and had not yet transferred the registration into his own name, according to police. Police did not say in the published account when the vehicle sale took place or identify the prior owner. (tapinto.net) ### What charge was filed against the driver? Paul Almeida was charged with receiving stolen property, according to Fairfield police. Police also said he was issued several motor vehicle summonses, though the published accounts reviewed did not list the specific traffic citations. (tapinto.net) Fairfield police said Almeida was arrested at the scene, taken to headquarters for processing and then released pending an initial court date. The reports reviewed did not specify the date of that first appearance. ### Does an out-of-state plate automatically mean wrongdoing? (tapinto.net) New Jersey’s Motor Vehicle Commission says a standard New Jersey driver license remains valid for driving, but the agency’s public site does not suggest that using an out-of-state plate by itself is a criminal offense. In this case, the issue identified by police was not simply that the plate came from Florida, but that the plate had been reported stolen and that registration questions remained unresolved after the vehicle sale. (tapinto.net) The Fairfield case turned on the plate’s status in law-enforcement systems, according to police. The reader alert, the Florida stolen-plate report and the later investigation into the canceled registration formed the basis of the stop and charge described in the published accounts. (nj.gov) ### Where can the case be followed? The New Jersey Judiciary’s Municipal Court Case Search portal allows the public to look up municipal traffic or complaint information by name, ticket number or complaint number. The portal says users can contact the municipal court directly with specific questions about ticket or complaint information. As of Tuesday, June 2, the public reporting reviewed for this story showed the charge, the police narrative and the release pending an initial court date. (tapinto.net) The next public milestone is likely to appear through the New Jersey municipal court system or any later statement from Fairfield police. (portal.njcourts.gov)