Dog-Sitter Charged in $235K Theft of Designer Goods from Bernards Township Home
Police say she stole over $235,000 in designer handbags, footwear, clothes, and jewelry from a Bernards Township house where she watched dogs and children.
Teresa Soraluz, 64, from Dover, faces second-degree theft charges. Police say she stole over $235,000 in designer handbags, footwear, clothes, and jewelry from a Bernards Township house where she watched dogs and children. Authorities took the Morris County woman into custody on Oct. 29, 2025, after a four-month investigation.
A Bernards Township homeowner told police about missing belongings in June. That same person filed another report in August. Combined losses topped $235,000.
Detectives from Bernards Township and the Somerset County Prosecutor's Computer Crimes Unit worked the case. Their work showed Soraluz had been taking things after her shifts watching pets, according to law enforcement.
Investigators secured a warrant. They searched Soraluz's Dover house, her car, and her belongings. Inside, they found roughly 100 handbags, coats, shoes, and jewelry pieces.
She went to Somerset County Jail after her arrest. She's still there waiting for a Superior Court detention hearing.
Bernards Township Police Chief Timothy King and Deputy Chief Michael Sweeney made the arrest public alongside Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald and Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr.
King and Sweeney praised the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office, Morris County Prosecutor's Office, and Morris County Sheriff's Emergency Response Team for their assistance during the probe. The joint effort stretched across months and required work between different counties.
No lawyer for the accused appeared in the court records on Thursday.
