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Essex County Prosecutor's Office

'Ruthless' Brick City Brims Druglord From Montclair Convicted Of Three Murders, More 'Ruthless' Brick City Brims Druglord From Montclair Convicted Of Three Murders, More
'Ruthless' Brick City Brims Druglord From Montclair Convicted Of Three Murders, More The leader of a notorious Essex County street gang that dominated the region's drug trade was convicted by a federal jury of three murders, among other counts, authorities said. Michael Healy, 43, of Montclair, "ruthlessly ordered murders so that he could protect his narcotics operation and continue to sell large quantities of dangerous [drugs],” U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said after federal jurors in Newark returned their verdicts on Wednesday, April 3. Healy "recruited men to kill someone he thought was an informant, and even when they killed the wrong person – a bystander – he ord…
Paroled NJ Drug Dealer Admits Trafficking Kilo Of Coke Armed With Trio Of Guns Paroled NJ Drug Dealer Admits Trafficking Kilo Of Coke Armed With Trio Of Guns
Paroled NJ Drug Dealer Admits Trafficking Kilo Of Coke Armed With Trio Of Guns 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: An ex-con from Newark who spent 13 years in state prison will be doing federal time after admitting that he trafficked a kilo of cocaine while packing three guns. Carlos Ovidio Gonzalez, 36, was paroled in March 2022 after serving time for drug dealing and illegal weapons possession convictions out of Morris County in 2009, records show. Gonzalez faces significantly more time now that he's pleaded guilty in federal court to having and conspiring to sell coke and fentanyl and illegally possessing guns and ammo, among other counts. Unlike the state of New Jersey, the federal prison s…
Accused Dealer Charged With Fentanyl-Laced Crack Death Of Jersey City Man At Lyndhurst Hotel Accused Dealer Charged With Fentanyl-Laced Crack Death Of Jersey City Man At Lyndhurst Hotel
Accused Dealer Charged With Fentanyl-Laced Crack Death Of Jersey City Man At Lyndhurst Hotel An accused drug dealer from Bloomfield provided the drugs that killed a user from Jersey City at a Lyndhurst motel, authorities charged. Alberto Delgado, 43, was accused of selling the fentanyl-laced crack that killed 54-year-old Luke Revell after he smoked it at the Winslow Motor Hotel just off eastbound Route 3. Delgado had more than a pound and a half of the drugs in a storage unit when detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office searched it, according to a complaint on file in Superior Court in Hackensack. They also learned that Delgado had communicated with Revell by ce…
Suspended South Jersey Driver Charged In Deadly Valentine's Day Hit-Run Crash: Prosecutor Suspended South Jersey Driver Charged In Deadly Valentine's Day Hit-Run Crash: Prosecutor
Suspended South Jersey Driver Charged In Deadly Valentine's Day Hit-Run Crash: Prosecutor An arrest has been made in a deadly hit-and-run crash that killed a 22-year-old Paterson man and injured another person. Dhkir Robinson, 42, is believed to have been behind the wheel of the vehicle that struck Winston Perlaza and a second victim Wednesday evening, Feb. 14 on Milton Avenue in Nutley, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens, II and Nutley Police Chief Thomas Strumolo said. Perlaza was taken to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and pronounced dead soon after, Stephens and Strumolo said. A second pedestrian was also taken to a local hospital for non-fatal injuries…
NJ Rap Record Exec Admits Drug Op With Kilos Of Heroin, Fentanyl Stashed In Cliffside, Harrison NJ Rap Record Exec Admits Drug Op With Kilos Of Heroin, Fentanyl Stashed In Cliffside, Harrison
NJ Rap Record Exec Admits Drug Op With Kilos Of Heroin, Fentanyl Stashed In Cliffside, Harrison Newark native Dawan "DB" Brown had just gotten a record label and recording studio going when the hammer came down. He's now likely to spend a significant amount of time behind bars after accepting a deal from federal prosecutors. Brown, 38, had been a local teenage boxing phenom from the South Ward who became a Golden Glove champion 20 years ago. According to his online bio, the Weequahic High School graduate worked for 14 years as a custodian with the Newark Board of Education before launching his own record label, 100 Percent Pure Ent, in 2018. Two years later Brown opened the Excl…
NO CHOICE: Ex-Con Who Shot Two Victims Five Days Apart In Newark Takes Guilty Plea NO CHOICE: Ex-Con Who Shot Two Victims Five Days Apart In Newark Takes Guilty Plea
NO Choice: Ex-Con Who Shot Two Victims Five Days Apart In Newark Takes Guilty Plea UPDATE: There’s no trying to present a defense in court when the prosecutors have a video of you shooting someone, as well as the loaded gun you were carrying when they arrested you. So ex-con Antoine Hawkins, 31, of Newark, took a deal from the government, admitting in federal court in Newark this week that he shot two victims five days apart in the Brick City in August 2020. Hawkins also pleaded guilty to possessing a 9mm Springfield Armory XDM pistol loaded with 19 rounds and 626 heroin folds for sale when they arrested him a month later, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger …
FBI: Sex, Money, Murder Members Nabbed With Guns, Coke, More At Open-Air Brick City Drug Market FBI: Sex, Money, Murder Members Nabbed With Guns, Coke, More At Open-Air Brick City Drug Market
FBI: Sex, Money, Murder Members Nabbed With Guns, Coke, More At Open-Air Brick City Drug Market Five reputed members and associates of the Sex, Money, Murder gang were charged by federal authorities with peddling fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine at an open-air drug market in Newark. Drugs and loaded guns were seized during the arrests early last month of the quintet, who U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip Sellinger said slung the potentially lethal narcotics from the neighborhood at Kent and Brenner streets. He identified them as Fuquan Williams, 33; Dwight Dixon, 52; Nafee Patterson, 41; Jabriel Mason, 20; and Daqwuan Barkley, 29, all of Essex County. A federal magistrate judge in New…
Online NJ Romance Scammer Who Conned Woman Out Of $66,000 Gets More Than Two Years, No Parole Online NJ Romance Scammer Who Conned Woman Out Of $66,000 Gets More Than Two Years, No Parole
Online NJ Romance Scammer Who Conned Woman Out Of $66,000 Gets More Than Two Years, No Parole An Essex County man who helped swindle what he called a “filthy rich woman” out of nearly $66,000 in an online romance scam was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison. Mahmoud Bowler, 40, of Newark, and an unidentified co-conspirator whom he grew up with in Ghana double-teamed the Florida victim over the course of nearly three years after connecting with her on an online dating site using a bogus profile name. Bowler then turned around and screwed his partner, keeping the majority of the money that they'd collected from the victim, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Phillip R. Sellinger said. …
3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster 3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster
3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster A trio of ruthless Essex County gang members who admitted gunning down a government informant after killing an innocent bystander they mistook for the snitch were sentenced to nearly 100 years combined in federal prison. There’s no parole in the federal prison system, which means the East Orange trio will all have to serve out their plea-bargained sentences: Thomas Zimmerman, 28, was sentenced to 37 years; Tyquan Daniels, 27, got 35 years; Ali Hill, 30, was sentenced to 25 years. That means Daniels and Zimmerman will both be pushing 65 when either tastes freedom again. Hill would be approa…
Ex-NJ Lawyer Convicted Of Killing GF Dies In Jail On Father's Day Ex-NJ Lawyer Convicted Of Killing GF Dies In Jail On Father's Day
Ex-NJ Lawyer Convicted Of Killing GF Dies In Jail On Father's Day James Ray III, the Montclair lawyer convicted of killing Angela Blesdoe, the mother of his 6-year-old daughter, died in jail just days before he was due for sentencing, Daily Voice has learned. Ray, 60, was found unconscious in his cell at the Essex County Jail on Father's Day around 6 p.m., the New York Times says citing James Troisi, the vice president of the union that represents the jail’s supervisors.  "We have confirmed that James Ray that has died, though the cause and manner are not known," said Robert Florida, spokesman for the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office. "An a…
Home Invaders Pose As Amazon Workers, Rob And Pistol-Whip Bergen Homeowner Home Invaders Pose As Amazon Workers, Rob And Pistol-Whip Bergen Homeowner
Home Invaders Pose As Amazon Workers, Rob And Pistol-Whip Bergen Homeowner Three unemployed ex-cons posing as Amazon delivery workers pistol-whipped a Bergen County homeowner before fleeing with cash, sneakers and jewelry, authorities said. Newark native Jazmir Carter, 25, currently of Stroudsburg, PA, and Brick City residents Ameer Holcomb, 42, and Michael Carter, 26, forced their way into the North Arlington home after the victim opened the door around 9:30 a.m. Feb. 21, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. North Arlington police notified his office, the prosecutor said, and a joint investigation led to raids by his detectives and members of the FBI Safe …
More Patient Sex Abuse Charges For NJ Doctor More Patient Sex Abuse Charges For NJ Doctor
More Patient Sex Abuse Charges For NJ Doctor Patient sexual abuse charges continue to rack up for one New Jersey urgent care doctor. Yet another one of Gurvindra Johal's former patients has stepped forwarding, alleging the 55-year-old physician sexually assaulted them in Middlesex County, authorities said. On Tuesday, April 4, Johal, of the Colonia section of Woodbridge, was charged with an additional count of criminal sexual contact, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said. The investigation now includes a woman who alleges that Johal touched her inappropriately while under his care at Amboy Urgent Care,…
Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit
Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit A law enforcement officer fired a shot and an NJ TRANSIT bus was involved in a crash during a pursuit in East Orange on Sunday, responders said. An SUV apparently was being pursued when it crashed and its three occupants bailed out at the intersection of Springdale and Arlington avenues near the Garden State Parkway overpass around noon on March 26. No serious injuries were immediately reported from the collision, which knocked the bus onto a resident's lawn. No one apparently was struck by gunfire. The trio vanished. Detectives work the scene of the crash and bailout following a purs…
Thief Convicted Of Stealing Home, $110K+ From Victim Causing Her To Lose NJ Home Thief Convicted Of Stealing Home, $110K+ From Victim Causing Her To Lose NJ Home
Thief Convicted Of Stealing Home, $110K+ From Victim Causing Her To Lose NJ Home A 36-year-old Newark man has been convicted of theft and forgery that caused a woman to lose her home, authorities said. The thefts also caused the woman with a mental health condition to lose more than $110,000, according to Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens. ,After a four-day trial, the jury found  Obadiah Salters guilty on all 24 counts of theft and forgery charges, Stephens said on Friday, March 17. In December 2016, the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office Financial Crimes Unit initiated an investigation into alleged acts of forgery and theft by Salters against…
Boyfriend Of Newark Woman Missing Since 2017 Charged With Stealing Disabled Son's Benefits Boyfriend Of Newark Woman Missing Since 2017 Charged With Stealing Disabled Son's Benefits
Boyfriend Of Newark Woman Missing Since 2017 Charged With Stealing Disabled Son's Benefits The former live-in boyfriend of a Newark woman who's been missing more than five years accessed her personal information and within days began embezzling benefit payments meant for her disabled son, federal authorities charged. Asmar Earp, a 37-year-old ex-con with an extensive criminal record, first changed the pin code on the benefits debit card belonging to Venika Williams less than a week after she was reported missing in December 2017, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. A few months later, he used Williams's name, date of birth and Social Security number to receive …
NJ Man Had Help From Brother Hiding Ex's Body In Chemical Filled Trash Bags, Jury Finds NJ Man Had Help From Brother Hiding Ex's Body In Chemical Filled Trash Bags, Jury Finds
NJ Man Had Help From Brother Hiding Ex's Body In Chemical Filled Trash Bags, Jury Finds A Newark man was convicted of stalking and killing his ex-girlfriend in 2018 before trying to disintegrate her remains by keeping them in garbage bags filled with chemicals, authorities announced.  The man's brother was also convicted of trying to hide the body. A history of domestic violence including strangulation and aggravated assault led up to the harrowing moment Gualberto Lebron, now 37, killed Julia Vega, a mom of three, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said. During one incident, Vega escaped the apartment where her children were, and was chased outs…
UPDATE: Shots Fired, Two Seized In SWAT-Assisted Drug Probe In North Jersey UPDATE: Shots Fired, Two Seized In SWAT-Assisted Drug Probe In North Jersey
Update: Shots Fired, Two Seized In Swat-assisted Drug Probe In North Jersey Narcotics detectives arrested two men, one of whom surrendered without incident in Lyndhurst and the other who was seized by a Hudson County SWAT team after shots were fired in Kearny. Boosted by heavily-armed tactical squads, detectives from the Bergen and Hudson county prosecutor's offices simultaneously hit both locations early Wednesday, Jan. 25, as part of a drug investigation, ranking law enforcement officers told Daily Voice. The first suspect was immediately seized at a single-family home on Union Avenue, they said. The second proved more problematic. He barricaded himself in an a…
Human Trafficking: US Homeland Security Investigations, NJSP, Others Cite New Enforcement Tools Human Trafficking: US Homeland Security Investigations, NJSP, Others Cite New Enforcement Tools
Human Trafficking: US Homeland Security Investigations, Njsp, Others Cite New Enforcement Tools New ways of targeting and stopping human trafficking will be discussed by an elite group of federal, state and local law enforcement authorities in Newark on Wednesday, Jan. 25. U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Phillip R. Sellinger, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark Special Agent In Charge Ricky J. Patel and Ali Boak, the director of the Global Center on Human Trafficking, will be among the speakers at the unique news media event. They will discuss joint efforts at fighting human trafficking by giving law enforcement at all levels the necessary tools – including a new mobile app and…
Graphic Footage Shows Good Samaritans, Police Dragging Injured Newark Officer To Safety Graphic Footage Shows Good Samaritans, Police Dragging Injured Newark Officer To Safety
Graphic Footage Shows Good Samaritans, Police Dragging Injured Newark Officer To Safety Newly-released footage shows the terrifying moment one of two rookie, Newark police officers were shot by a sniper Tuesday, Nov. 1 (scroll for video). The footage apparently captured by neighbors shows a good Samaritan stop her vehicle to help one of the injured officers bleeding from his neck on the ground near Van Velsor Place and Chancellor Avenue. She appears to get some type of garment from her vehicle to stop the bleeding as other officers rush over — then gunshots ring out. Officers kneel on the ground with their wounded partner as neighbors yell for everyone to disperse. The sniper…
Sniper Kendall Howard Accused Of Shooting 2 Newark Officers Captured After Manhunt: Sources Sniper Kendall Howard Accused Of Shooting 2 Newark Officers Captured After Manhunt: Sources
Sniper Kendall Howard Accused Of Shooting 2 Newark Officers Captured After Manhunt: Sources UPDATE: Kendall Howard, the accused East Orange sniper wanted for shooting two Newark police officers, has been captured after a massive search, sources tell Daily Voice. Howard was arrested Wednesday morning by Newark police on two attempted murder charges, sources with direct knowledge of the incident say. Details surrounding his arrest were not immediately clear. Howard had been wanted in connection with another shooting from last Friday when police received a 911 call from a civilian who reported seeing him in the area of an apartment building at 25 Van Velsor Place, authorities said. …
Man Accused Of Shooting Two Newark Officers Captured: Sources Man Accused Of Shooting Two Newark Officers Captured: Sources
Man Accused Of Shooting Two Newark Officers Captured: Sources UPDATE: An East Orange man wanted for shooting two Newark police officers, has been captured after a massive search, sources tell Daily Voice. Kendall Howard was arrested Wednesday morning by Newark police on two attempted murder charges, sources with direct knowledge of the incident say. Howard had been wanted in connection with another shooting from last Friday when police received a 911 call from a civilian who reported seeing him in the area of an apartment building at 25 Van Velsor Place, authorities said. The officers found Howard after pulling into a parking lot behind the building…
New Charges Indicate Dating App Serial Killer Tried To Sexually Assault Teen Before Killing Her New Charges Indicate Dating App Serial Killer Tried To Sexually Assault Teen Before Killing Her
New Charges Indicate Dating App Serial Killer Tried To Sexually Assault Teen Before Killing Her New charges filed against a North Jersey man who is serving a 160-year prison sentence for using dating apps to lure and kill his victims indicate that he tried to sexually assault a 15-year-old girl before he killed her — and kept her body hidden for years. Khalil Wheeler-Weaver has been charged in a new indictment with attempted sexual assault of a minor, endangering the welfare of a child, and desecration of human remains, in the death of 15-year-old Mawa Doumbia, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II said. He had been charged with murder in Mawa's death in Marc…
Bad Heart Killed NJ Man, 73, While In Police Custody, Grand Jury Finds Bad Heart Killed NJ Man, 73, While In Police Custody, Grand Jury Finds
Bad Heart Killed NJ Man, 73, While In Police Custody, Grand Jury Finds Newark police bore no responsibility in the death from heart disease of a 73-year-old man who collapsed in the back seat of a patrol car, a state grand jury has found. Juan Restrepo of Summit had been taken into custody by officers who'd responded to a report of an intoxicated man behind the wheel of a vehicle on June 15, 2020, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. “He was then transported to [an] NJ TRANSIT station, where officials attempted to obtain a Breathalyzer reading,” the attorney general said. “A reading was not able to be obtained.” Restrepo “was subsequent…
Feds: Major NJ Drug Trio Admits Killing Informant, Innocent Bystander, Among Others Feds: Major NJ Drug Trio Admits Killing Informant, Innocent Bystander, Among Others
Feds: Major NJ Drug Trio Admits Killing Informant, Innocent Bystander, Among Others A trio of ruthless Essex County gang members admitted their roles in a major drug operation responsible for gunning down a government informant -- following the murder of an innocent bystander who was mistakenly believed to be the snitch. In exchange for their pleas, Tyquan Daniels and Thomas Zimmerman, 27, face a minimum of 33 years in federal prison each, while Ali Hill, 29, is looking at a minimum of 20 years. There's no parole in the federal prison system, which means Daniels and Zimmerman would be turning 60 when either tastes freedom again. Hill would be nearing 50. Federal prosecuto…
Amy DeGise Hit-Run Case Transferred To Essex Prosecutor, Heading To Special Remand Court Amy DeGise Hit-Run Case Transferred To Essex Prosecutor, Heading To Special Remand Court
Amy DeGise Hit-Run Case Transferred To Essex Prosecutor, Heading To Special Remand Court Jersey City Councilwoman Amy DeGise's highly-controversial hit-and-run case was transferred to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office due to a potential conflict of interest, sources tell Daily Voice. DeGise's father is Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise, who took office after winning a special election in November 2022. The ECPO will be bringing the case to special remand court, which is for cases that have been specially selected by the county prosecutors — usually those of the fourth degree and third degree only — for early disposition. Thousands of Jersey City residents began callin…
Kearny Man Charged In OD Death Of Newark Fire Captain Kearny Man Charged In OD Death Of Newark Fire Captain
Kearny Man Charged In OD Death Of Newark Fire Captain A 42-year-old man has been charged in the overdose death of a beloved 49-year-old Newark fire captain who was found unresponsive at a fire station in January. Eliasel Baez, 42, of Kearny, was charged with strict liability in the death of Newark Fire Captain Carlos Rivera, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, said. He was also charged with distributing cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, authorities said. On Jan. 15, Rivera, of Sayreville, was found unresponsive inside the Newark firehouse of Engine 15 Ladder 7 at 269 Park Avenue. 

He was taken to University Hos…
Uber Driver, Buddy Stole $165K In Luxury Items, Cocaine, 15 LBS Of Marijuana: Kearny PD Uber Driver, Buddy Stole $165K In Luxury Items, Cocaine, 15 LBS Of Marijuana: Kearny PD
Uber Driver, Buddy Stole $165K In Luxury Items, Cocaine, 15 LBS Of Marijuana: Kearny PD A Newark Uber driver and his buddy from the Bronx were nabbed after a four-month-long investigation that yielded 15 pounds of pot, $165,000 in luxury goods and more, police said. Javier Ortega, 40, of Newark, NJ, and Severiano Ybert Perez, 42, of Bronx, NY, were arrested on Tuesday, July 12, Kearny Police Chief George King said. The investigation all started with two burglaries reported in one multi-family home on Argyle Place on Feb. 27, police said.  The suspects matched the description of the burglars who committed similar thefts at a Kennedy Boulevard, North Bergen, on Feb. 2…
Popular Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Firetruck Crash Popular Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Firetruck Crash
Popular Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Firetruck Crash Those who knew Barry Dowdell, Jr. were grieving his loss this Fourth of July. The Allentown native was struck by a firetruck and ejected from his bike around 6 p.m. Friday, July 1, authorities said.  He was rushed to University Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 6:28 p.m., a spokesman for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said. The collision is being in investigated by the Essex County Prosecutor’s Crime Scene Investigations Bureau. Meanwhile, countless tributes poured in on social media. Here are just some.
Driver Who Struck, Killed Teen NJ Dirt Biker Was Unlicensed: Prosecutor Driver Who Struck, Killed Teen NJ Dirt Biker Was Unlicensed: Prosecutor
Driver Who Struck, Killed Teen NJ Dirt Biker Was Unlicensed: Prosecutor A 36-year-old Essex County woman has been charged with leaving the scene of a crash that left a 13-year-old middle schooler dead, authorities announced. Marilyn J. Quisepe-Falcon is accused of hitting Victor Huaringa-Alvez with her Ford Explorer while he was on a dirt bike around 5:30 p.m. at the intersection of Joralemon Street and Garden Avenue in Belleville on June 7, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office tells Daily Voice. Victor was pronounced dead about 45 minutes later at a local hospital, and Quisepe-Falcon took off before police arrived, according to the prosecutor's office. She su…
NJ Man Trying To Flee Hospital With Makeshift Bedsheet Rope Dies: Report NJ Man Trying To Flee Hospital With Makeshift Bedsheet Rope Dies: Report
NJ Man Trying To Flee Hospital With Makeshift Bedsheet Rope Dies: Report A New Jersey man trying to flee from the third floor of a hospital fell to his death after trying to use a makeshift bedsheet as a rope, RLSmedia reports. Crews responding to the fall report at Clara Maass Hospital in Belleville, Essex County found a man suffering from serious injuries shortly before 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 24, the outlet reports citing sources involved with the investigation. The man — who an investigation showed broke a window and jumped out with nearly two dozen bedsheets tied together — was pronounced dead at the fall scene, the report says. The case was being handle…
'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder 'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder
'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder Two out-of-state men have been charged with murder after bringing a New York man from his apartment to the Eagle Rock Reservation in West Orange and shooting him dead earlier this year, authorities said. Michael Verdel, 71, of the Bronx and Posley Sulaiman, 31, of Detroit, MI, gunned down Steels on a hiking trail at the West Orange reservation March 4, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, said. Verdel, who is referred to as “the rabbi’’ by those who know him, was taken into custody in New York and has been extradited to New Jersey. He was being held on cha…