Clifton, NJ woman loses late daughter's jewelry in home invasion

🔴 Ramona Cartagena was crafting when two men entered her Clifton home

🔴 The men used the duct tape Cartagena was using to bound her up

🔴 Cash and jewelry belonging to Cartagena's late daughter was stolen

CLIFTON — A 73-year-old woman who had been spending Sunday afternoon working on a craft project was confronted by home invaders who tied her up with duct tape and held her at gunpoint.

Police said the woman heard someone enter her home on Linden Avenue around noon as she was in the kitchen but assumed it was a family member.

Ramona Cartagena was soon thrown to the floor by two men who used the duct tape she was working with to cover her mouth and tie up her ankles and feet.

The men proceeded to ransack the house and leave with a number of valuables and cash, according to police. Cartagena was able to remove the tape and get her cell phone out of her pants pocket to call police.

"Yesterday I was the victim of a home invasion. Two guys enter my home and tie me up and went through the house taking valuable things, some of them irreplaceable because of they sentimental value to us. Praise God I am ok but it been one of the most scary situation I have ever been in my life," Cartagena wrote on her Facebook page.

Ramona Cartagen's daughter Maria (ABC 7 Eyewitness News)

Irreplaceable items stolen

Cartagena told NBC 4 New York one of the items taken was a piece of jewelry belonging to her late daughter that was to be passed on to her granddaughter.

Thanks to her watching TV shows like "CSI" and "Forensic Files," Cartagena told CBS New York she followed the advice of the show's detectives to "always remember." As a result Cartagena said she was able to draw pictures of the suspects showing a logo on his jacket and other physical features.

Clifton police described the suspects as "dark-skinned males" dressed in all-black and wearing surgical masks.

They asked anyone with information about the invasion to call them at 973-470-5908.

Dan Alexander is a reporter for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at dan.alexander@townsquaremedia.com

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