The Somerset County Prosecutor's Office Fugitive Unit is comprised of county detectives whose primary responsibilities are to locate and apprehend wanted fugitives.

This unit is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Fugitive Unit travels throughout various jurisdictions within New Jersey and outside state boundaries to pursue felons wanted for various criminal offenses, violation of parole and failure to comply with bail tracking. These efforts require extensive cooperation between the fugitive unit and law enforcement agencies from local, state and federal sectors.

Since 1997, this unit is responsible for approximately 300 arrests per year, on the average. An additional function includes the arrest and incarceration of individuals located within Somerset County who are wanted as fugitives from out-of-state authorities. All wanted fugitives arrested outside of New Jersey must be extradited back to New Jersey. It is the responsibility of the Fugitive Unit to apply for a Governor warrant within 90 days, to bring the wanted individuals back to New Jersey.

The Fugitive Unit is currently working in conjunction with the United States Marshals Service and the New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force in order to apprehend criminals involved in criminal activity.

In conjunction with the Courier News, a newspaper feature entitled "Somerset County's Most Wanted" appears on a weekly basis. As a result, phone-in tipsters have contributed immensely towards the apprehension of those seen in the features.