Should "was" be dropped here? (it is apparently a grammatical mistake)

Context:

The police had been summoned to the home by a 911 call of a possible burglary, according to the police. The owner of 25 Pine Street, who lives on the first and second floors, reported hearing what he was thought was a break-in in a basement apartment, where a 25-year-old man lived, according to Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.

More:
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/12/officer-shot-and-critically-wounded-in-brooklyn/?hp