Cranford Police Announce Arrest in Theft Scheme

From the Cranford Police Dept: 

On March 3, 2014, Cranford Police arrested Khalid Onion, age 38, of Newark, New Jersey and charged him with Theft and Forgery in connection to an ongoing scheme targeting area food and beverage wholesalers.

East Coast Foods, located at 45 Jackson Dr., reported on January 2, 2014 that an unknown actor had used a fraudulently created check to purchase over $3500 in wholesale beverages.  An investigation by Cranford detectives determined that similar crimes had occurred at distributors around the state, including one in Irvington NJ, and that the suspect operated a white Ford van.

On February 27, 2014 Detective Robert Montague learned that an almost identical order had been placed at East Coast Foods and was scheduled for delivery on March 3, 2014.  Following an undercover operation at the East Coast Foods warehouse, Detectives Montague and Spencer Durkin identified and arrested Khalid Onion when he arrived in a Ford Econoline van to purchase over 70 cases of Red Bull energy drink using a forged business check.

While at the scene, police also recovered a second forged check and determined that Onion had planned to target a second distributor, located in Newark NJ, on the same date. 

Khalid Onion was processed at Cranford Police Headquarters and was charged with two counts each of Uttering a Forged Document and Theft by Deception.  Two passengers in Onion’s van were found to be unaware that the purchases were fraudulent and were not charged.

Onion was scheduled for a first court appearance in Superior Court on March 7, 2014.