Newark Man Gets 10 Years for Robbery, Burglary

A Newark man who robbed a woman's purse, burglarized a car and led authorities on a high-speed chase has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Kendell Grimsley, 42, must serve 85 percent of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole, the Union County Prosecutor's Office said. Grimsley was convicted in June of second-degree robbery and third-degree burglary.

According to the prosecutor's office, Grimsley robbed a woman's purse outside her Hillside home on Sept. 19, 2010. Grimsley attempted to grab the purse out of her hands, but the woman wouldn't let go, the prosecutor's office said.

The 31-year-old woman was dragged across a stretch of pavement, causing injuries that included bruising, swelling and a laceration, before she finally released her purse, the prosecutor's office said.

Grimsley got back into his vehicle and fled the scene, but passing motorists stopped to help the woman and gave a description and license plate number of his vehicle.

The green Pontiac Bonneville was reported stolen out of Newark, the prosecutor's office said.

Two days after the robbery, a person spotted Grimsley burglarizing a car parked in the Toys 'R' Us parking lot on Route 22 in Union Township, the prosecutor's office said.

Grimsley drove away in the stolen Pontiac and then led authorities on a high-speed chase when they attempted to pull him over at a nearby gas station, the prosecutor's office said.

The 15-minute pursuit extended from Union to Hillside and into Newark where Grimsley eventually crashed the vehicle, the prosecutor's office said. Grimsley then attempted to escape on foot, but was apprehended.