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River Edge, NJ

Troubled Dad Plunges To Death From NJ/NY Lookout Troubled Dad Plunges To Death From NJ/NY Lookout
Troubled Dad Plunges To Death From NJ/NY Lookout A troubled man from River Edge who’d just been involved in a fender bender leaped to his death from atop the Palisades at the New York/New Jersey border on Wednesday, Dec. 13, authorities confirmed. The 38-year-old man had hit a couple of cars while trying to back out of a dead end near his son’s school. A resident shared video of the incident with River Edge police who -- aware of his history -- began looking for the troubled driver. Then came the heartbreaking news. It was shortly before 5 p.m. when a concerned citizen called Palisades Interstate Parkway Police from the State Line …
Feds Indict Broker For Stealing $3M From Senior NJ Clients To Gamble, Buy Home, Gold Coins Feds Indict Broker For Stealing $3M From Senior NJ Clients To Gamble, Buy Home, Gold Coins
Feds Indict Broker For Stealing $3M From Senior NJ Clients To Gamble, Buy Home, Gold Coins A disgraced former broker and investment advisor is now under federal indictment for stealing more than $3 million from clients that authorities said he used to gamble and buy gold coins and a new house in Bergen County. Kenneth A. Welsh, 42, of River Edge, "used his position as an investment advisor to gain the trust of his victims," U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. "(He) then exploited that trust,” Sellinger said. Welsh was working at Wells Fargo Clearing Services in Fairfield when federal authorities said he began shifting money from clients' accounts to that he controlled in Ju…
Daughter Of Late Combat Vet Jailed For Death Threats To Public Officials: NJ State Police Daughter Of Late Combat Vet Jailed For Death Threats To Public Officials: NJ State Police
Daughter Of Late Combat Vet Jailed For Death Threats To Public Officials: NJ State Police A grieving naval officer’s daughter from Bergen County who’s been involved in a court battle with the local veterans home made what New Jersey State Police allege were credible threats against two public officials following her father’s death. Amy Johnson, 54, of Westwood, had initially “voiced her dissatisfaction with the court’s decision" over a power-of-attorney request, says a State Police complaint filed in Superior Court in Hackensack. She initially left email and voice messages that the NJSP said mentioned two public officials by name and were “concerning, harassing and threatening i…
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner?
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? UPDATE: The prosecution of two Paterson-based school bus companies accused of risking children's safety by hiring criminals as drivers, operating unsafe buses and other violations has notched its first conviction. Will there be another? Henry Rhodes, 59, admitted in state Superior Court in Newark last week that he lied to school districts about the safety of buses and the credentials of drivers at both companies, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. The goal, authorities said, was to keep lucrative busing contracts in Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties no matter the …
Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Garden Apartment Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Garden Apartment
Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Garden Apartment SWAT team members ended a standoff of more than five hours when they subdued a knife-wielding man who’d barricaded himself in his mother’s River Edge apartment. A construction worker by trade, the man had been living in shelters in New York City before recently moving in with his mother at the Oxford Terrace Apartments. He'd become violent, however, so she fled and called police at 7:43 a.m., River Edge Police Chief Michael Walker said. Responding officers “tried to contend with him,” but he retreated into the kitchen of the garden apartment and began picking up knives, the chief said. Th…
SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Found On NJ Store Floor Snapping Shots Of Shopper's Privates SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Found On NJ Store Floor Snapping Shots Of Shopper's Privates
Sneaky PEEK: 'Upskirter' Found On NJ Store Floor Snapping Shots Of Shopper's Privates A brazen voyeur from Hackensack took "upskirting" to an extreme, authorities said, when a browsing shopper found him lying on the floor of a discount department store snapping photos up her dress. Marco Alvear, 40, scrambled to his feet and ran from the Lyndhurst store after the horrified 53-year-old Rutherford woman discovered what he was doing, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. Lyndhurst Detectives Chris Cuneo and Tom McSweeney identified Alvear, the lieutenant said, thanks to video surveillance from the store, which won't be identified here because of its cooperation with them. They al…
Off-Duty Son, Lieutenant Dad Indicted In Fatal Parkway Crash, Charges Dropped Against Mom Off-Duty Son, Lieutenant Dad Indicted In Fatal Parkway Crash, Charges Dropped Against Mom
Off-Duty Son, Lieutenant Dad Indicted In Fatal Parkway Crash, Charges Dropped Against Mom An off-duty Newark police officer, his father and his cousin were indicted by a grand jury on charges of trying to conceal the death of a pedestrian struck on the Garden State Parkway last year, authorities said. Charges against the young officer's mother, however, have been dropped. Louis A. Santiago, 25, was staring at a cellphone when his Honda Accord drifted onto the shoulder and struck Damian Z. Dymka, a 29-year-old nurse from Garfield, near Exit 151 in Bloomfield around 3 a.m. on Nov. 1, 2021, they alleged. What Dymka was doing on the parkway shoulder, particularly at that time, was…
Bergen County Attorney Competing On Jeopardy! Bergen County Attorney Competing On Jeopardy!
Bergen County Attorney Competing On Jeopardy! A Bergen County attorney will be competing on Jeopardy! Tuesday, July 19. Matt Mierswa, of River Edge, is going up against Catherine Belling, a medical humanities professor from Chicago, IL, and William Chou, a research fellow from Austin, TX.  Chou also competed Monday night and has won $15,601 so far. Tune into WABC to watch Mierswa at 7 p.m.
Troubled Teen Rescued After Tense Moments On Hackensack River Troubled Teen Rescued After Tense Moments On Hackensack River
Troubled Teen Rescued After Tense Moments On Hackensack River A troubled teen was quickly pulled from the Hackensack River by emergency responders before dawn Saturday. New Milford Police Lt. Scott Petrie and Officers Jillian Agnello and Daniel O’Neill found the girl on the bridge on Old New Bridge Road around 3 a.m. She'd been reported missing earlier, Capt. Kevin Van Saders said. The officers were joined by a member of the Bergen County Regional Crisis Negotiation Team, New Milford firefighters, the Bergen County scuba team and River Edge police, the captain said. They were talking with the girl when she went into and then under the wate…
Fire Consumes Paramus Home Fire Consumes Paramus Home
Fire Consumes Paramus Home A furious fire consumed a Paramus home early Friday. The blaze apparently ignited on a rear deck and quickly spread through the 2½-story, wood-frame Village Circle West  home around 5 a.m. A couple and their two daughters -- ages 4 and 8 -- all got out OK, neighbors said.  Aftermath of the Village Circle West fire in Paramus.Jo Fehl for DAILY VOICE The family, who'd moved in about a year ago, watched in their pajamas as the flames destroyed their home, they said. Firefighters had the bulk of the blaze knocked down within an hour and a half. Little was left once it was declared under c…
Troubled Teen On Hackensack River Bridge Saved By Officer Whose Brother Recently Rescued Her Troubled Teen On Hackensack River Bridge Saved By Officer Whose Brother Recently Rescued Her
Troubled Teen On Hackensack River Bridge Saved By Officer Whose Brother Recently Rescued Her SIBLING HEROES: A suicidal teen who threatened to jump into the Hackensack River was rescued by a New Milford police officer whose brother saved the very same girl two months ago, authorities said. Responding Officer Sam Doran found the troubled 14-year-old sitting on the railing of the Old New Bridge Road bridge shortly before 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, Police Chief Brian Clancy said. It took a half-hour or so, but Doran established a rapport with the girl -- enough so that she was willing to fist-bump him, the chief said. As she did, the officer grabbed the youngster and pulled her from the rail…
Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced
Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced An accountant from Lyndhurst was sentenced to a plea-bargained 21 months in federal prison for her role in embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a guided tour company she worked for. Ruby Baroni, 55, took a deal from the government rather than face trial – the same as her former manager, Estela Laluf, 76, of River Edge. Laluf was sentenced in April to an agreed-upon 27 months in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Julien Xavier Neals sentenced Baroni on Thursday to two years of supervised release and ordered her to pay $295,297 in restitution. Between 2010 and 2016, she and Lal…
DRAMATIC RESCUE: Hero Officer Saves Drowning NJ Girl Who Jumped Into River DRAMATIC RESCUE: Hero Officer Saves Drowning NJ Girl Who Jumped Into River
Dramatic Rescue: Hero Officer Saves Drowning NJ Girl Who Jumped Into River A rookie River Edge police officer dove into the Hackensack River to rescue a troubled teen who quickly began drowning after she jumped in. Officer Maclane Doran and the 14-year-old girl both went under at least once as the current took her under a footbridge late Wednesday, April 27, River Edge Police Chief Michael J. Walker said. "Then the girl began to go limp -- probably the onset of hypothermia," the chief said. "The river temp was about 50 degrees." Doran brought the girl to the shoreline. Sgt. Marc Abate and Officer Edward Blue helped get her out before she was taken to Hackensack U…
NJ Tour Company Manager, 76, Headed To Fed Prison For Embezzlement Scheme NJ Tour Company Manager, 76, Headed To Fed Prison For Embezzlement Scheme
NJ Tour Company Manager, 76, Headed To Fed Prison For Embezzlement Scheme UPDATE: A 76-year-old former Bergen County guided-tour company manager is headed to federal prison for 27 months for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from her employer. Estela Laluf Genin -- formerly of Rutherford and River Edge -- must serve the entire sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. Laluf Genin began working at the East Rutherford-based company in 1989 and took a management position in 1996, federal authorities said. Between 2010 and 2016, she and an unidentified company accountant conspired to write checks against the firm’s bank accounts to c…
Women Looking For Any Excuse To Be Pulled Over By Bergen County Officer Going Viral Women Looking For Any Excuse To Be Pulled Over By Bergen County Officer Going Viral
Women Looking For Any Excuse To Be Pulled Over By Bergen County Officer Going Viral Women across North Jersey are apparently willing to get themselves into trouble if it means scoring a date with one of River Edge's newest officers. A photo of Domenic Pizzanelli holding a lost dog on the River Edge PBA Local 201's Facebook page has caught the attention of thousands of women, many threatening to run red lights and rob banks just to chat with the officer. The good news? The dog, MoMo, was returned home within hours. The bad news, at least for Bergen County hopefuls, Pizzanelli is off the market. In fact, Pizzanelli's girlfriend of two years, Riana McShea, has been nothing …
APARTMENT RAID: Large Cache Of Coke, Trio Of Tasers Seized, Hackensack Repeat Offender Jailed APARTMENT RAID: Large Cache Of Coke, Trio Of Tasers Seized, Hackensack Repeat Offender Jailed
Apartment Raid: Large Cache Of Coke, Trio Of Tasers Seized, Hackensack Repeat Offender Jailed A SWAT-backed drug raid on a Hackensack ex-con’s apartment turned up “a large amount” of cocaine, as well as three Tasers, authorities said Friday. Howard M. Harper, 41, was arrested on drug and weapons charges Tuesday following a warranted raid on his Quail Heights apartment on Prospect Avenue, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. The SWAT team-backed raid was part of a joint investigation that Musella said his Narcotics Task Force detectives were conducting with Hackensack police. Harper has a criminal history covering nearly all of his adult life, records show. These include arr…
Police: Fleeing Shoplifter Struck On Busy NJ Highway Police: Fleeing Shoplifter Struck On Busy NJ Highway
Police: Fleeing Shoplifter Struck On Busy NJ Highway A fleeing shoplifter was struck and injured running across Route 4 in River Edge, authorities said. Jaime Rojas, a 35-year-old repeat offender from Bloomfield, was standing at the bus shelter on the westbound side of the highway around 5:45 p.m. Thursday when police investigating a shoplifting at the nearby CVS spotted him, River Edge Police Chief Michael Walker said. Seeing them, he bolted across the highway, the chief said. Rojas made it across the westbound side and over the divider but was struck on the eastbound side, he said. The driver told police she saw him tried but couldn't sto…
ICY MORNING (UPDATE): One Dead, Highways Closed, Dozens Injured In North Jersey Crashes ICY MORNING (UPDATE): One Dead, Highways Closed, Dozens Injured In North Jersey Crashes
ICY Morning (Update): One Dead, Highways Closed, Dozens Injured In North Jersey Crashes UPDATE: One victim was confirmed dead and westbound Route 3 in East Rutherford was temporarily closed Wednesday morning following what was the most serious in a series of crashes on icy North Jersey roads. Here's a listing of incidents. Mark Kolta, 31, of North Bergen had been involved in an earlier chain-reaction crash on the Hackensack River bridge on westbound Route 3 shortly after 6:30 a.m., East Rutherford Deputy Police Chief Phillip Taormina said. He was struck in another pileup after getting out of his vehicle, the deputy chief said. Kolta was pronounced dead at a local hospital a …
Prosecutor: Child-Sex Video Leads To Re-Arrest Of Released NJ Molester Prosecutor: Child-Sex Video Leads To Re-Arrest Of Released NJ Molester
Prosecutor: Child-Sex Video Leads To Re-Arrest Of Released NJ Molester A 23-year-old cook from Little Ferry who was freed pending trial on charges of repeatedly molesting a River Edge pre-teen was arrested again Thursday following the discovery of a disturbing homemade video, authorities said. A Superior Court judge in Hackensack had freed Roberto Carlos Mancia from the Bergen County Jail on Sept. 8, two weeks after detectives from Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella’s office arrested him on sexual assault and child endangerment charges. Investigators arrested him again on Thursday after discovering that Mancia had a child “engage in a sexual act while recor…
Mall Brawl In Paramus Brings Police From Several Towns, Arrests Made Mall Brawl In Paramus Brings Police From Several Towns, Arrests Made
Mall Brawl In Paramus Brings Police From Several Towns, Arrests Made UPDATE: Several people were taken into custody in a weekend brawl that brought police reinforcements from various towns to the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, responders said. No one was hurt and no major property damage was reported in the Saturday night flareup, which witnesses said quickly ended once borough police began making arrests. Police had been "having weekend problems with large numbers of juveniles" at the mall, a veteran law enforcement officer said Sunday. Saturday's trouble began when some began resisting efforts by a security guard and a few Paramus officers to move a large…
Bergen Nurse Practitioner Charged With Illegally Obtaining Thousands Of Oxy, Adderall Pills Bergen Nurse Practitioner Charged With Illegally Obtaining Thousands Of Oxy, Adderall Pills
Bergen Nurse Practitioner Charged With Illegally Obtaining Thousands Of Oxy, Adderall Pills A nurse practitioner from River Edge obtained thousands of Oxycodone and Adderall pills for distribution using bogus prescriptions, authorities charged. Mathew Testino surrendered to detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Narcotics Task Force on Wednesday. A judge freed him the next day, with conditions, pending trial. Testino, who turned 51 on Friday, had been wanted since being charged with dozens of drug-related counts this past March, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. He’s accused of “fraudulently obtaining and signing prescriptions on approximately 30 separate occasi…
NJ Man, 81, Killed With Ax, Grandson Taken Into Custody NJ Man, 81, Killed With Ax, Grandson Taken Into Custody
NJ Man, 81, Killed With Ax, Grandson Taken Into Custody UPDATE: Elmwood Park detectives signed murder and weapons charges against the grandson of a prominent borough resident who authorities said was killed when he interrupted a burglary. Jason Vicari, 21, of Wyckoff remained held in the Bergen County Jail following Tuesday's killing of 81-year-old Ronald Vicari. The younger Vicari was taken into custody following a brief SWAT standoff at the older man's Beechwood Avenue home. He awaits a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack on the charges filed by Elmwood Park police. Additional charges were expected -- among th…
SWAT STANDOFF: Barricaded River Edge Man Surrenders Without Incident SWAT STANDOFF: Barricaded River Edge Man Surrenders Without Incident
SWAT Standoff: Barricaded River Edge Man Surrenders Without Incident UPDATE: A troubled River Edge man remained barricaded for several hours before finally surrendering peacefully Sunday during what became the second call of the day for the Bergen County Regional SWAT team. The man's mother had summoned police to their East Midland Avenue home near Cedar Avenue Sunday morning on a welfare check, saying that he'd been "acting irrationally," a law enforcement source told Daily Voice. The father of three refused to talk with police, however. Not knowing whether or not he was a danger to himself or others, police summoned the SWAT team, along with the county Re…
SWAT STANDOFF: Barricaded Man Seized After Assault SWAT STANDOFF: Barricaded Man Seized After Assault
SWAT Standoff: Barricaded Man Seized After Assault UPDATE: An ex-con smashed his way into his girlfriend's home overnight with a sledgehammer, then beat her and held her captive at knifepoint -- at one point cutting her hair -- before he was captured following an hours-long SWAT standoff this weekend, authorities said. "I wasn't going to make it to see tomorrow," the Oakland victim said Owen R. Harshaney, 30, of Dunnelen, told her during the horrifying overnight ordeal, court papers show. The woman, who'd lost consciousness and suffered severe head injuries during the attack, managed to escape to a family member's home after Harshaney fell…
NJ Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars NJ Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars
NJ Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars Only a week after her former manager took a guilty plea in federal court, a Lyndhurst accountant admitted Monday that she helped embezzle hundreds of thousands of dollars from the guided tour company they worked for. Ruby Baroni, 54, took a deal from the government rather than face trial – the same as Estela Laluf, 76, of River Edge, did last Monday, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. Between 2010 and 2016, the pair conspired to write checks against the East Rutherford-based company’s bank accounts to cash, Honig said. Checks were also issued to actual company employees and co…
1,544 Heroin Folds, Four Guns Seized, 10 People Busted In Paterson East Side Drug Strikes 1,544 Heroin Folds, Four Guns Seized, 10 People Busted In Paterson East Side Drug Strikes
1,544 Heroin Folds, Four Guns Seized, 10 People Busted In Paterson East Side Drug Strikes Paterson police seized 1,544 heroin folds, a quarter-pound of crack and cocaine combined and 428 illegal pills while arresting several accused dealers -- one of whom was carrying two stolen guns, authorities said. Narcotics Division detectives watched Tuesday as Doyan D. McDermott, 37, and Jeffrey Taylor, 39, assisted by Huntier Small, 38, served late-morning and early-afternoon drive-up customers outside their East 29th Street home, city Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale said. After about 4½ hours, the investigators moved in. They grabbed Small and McDermott, then chased down Taylor, …
North Jersey Deliveryman Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen North Jersey Deliveryman Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen
North Jersey Deliveryman Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen A 23-year-old deliveryman from Little Ferry repeatedly molested a pre-teen at a River Edge residence, authorities charged. Roberto Carlos Mancia remained held Saturday in the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack following his arrest by county prosecutor’s detectives earlier this week, records show. Mancia is charged with second-degree sexual assault, as well as child endangerment. Investigating a tip from the state Division of Child Protection and Permanency, Special Victims Unit detectives found that Mancia “sexually assaulted th…
Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen
Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen A Wallington man who was once accused of having sex with a minor was arrested again on charges of sexually assaulting a pre-teen in Elmwood Park eight years ago, authorities confirmed. Rene A. Castaneda, 43, remained held Friday in the Bergen County Jail following his arrest the day before on aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and child endangerment charges. The unemployed Salvadoran national has an extensive criminal history in Bergen County dating back more than a decade, records show. Authorities in 2015 charged him with the statutory rape of a 14-year-old girl. How those charges…
Pipe Bomb Found Near Bus Stop, Bergen Apartment Complex Evacuated Pipe Bomb Found Near Bus Stop, Bergen Apartment Complex Evacuated
Pipe Bomb Found Near Bus Stop, Bergen Apartment Complex Evacuated A River Edge garden apartment complex was partially evacuated Thursday afternoon after an inert pipe bomb was discovered behind a nearby bus stop, authorities said. Someone found the black metal pipe with copper pellets inside behind a retaining wall at the Kinderkamack Road bus stop outside the Continental Gardens complex off the corner of Howland Avenue, Bergen County Sheriff Anthony Cureton confirmed. "The incendiary device was placed in a containment vessel by members of the Bomb Squad," Cureton said. Responders also taped off one of the buildings in the complex. An elderly man taken …
UPDATE: NJ Girl Among Three Seriously Injured In Scooter Crash UPDATE: NJ Girl Among Three Seriously Injured In Scooter Crash
Update: NJ Girl Among Three Seriously Injured In Scooter Crash UPDATE: A 17-year-old River Edge girl and two Bronx teens were all seriously injured when their scooter barreled onto Route 4 and were struck by a passing vehicle, authorities said Sunday. The trio – including a 15-year-old girl and 16-year-old boy – were headed down Myrtle Avenue in Englewood late Saturday when the scooter hit a traffic island and careened onto the westbound highway, where they were struck by a vehicle, Bergen County Sheriff Anthony Cureton said. All three were taken to Hackensack University Medical Center. The most seriously injured was the Bronx girl, who sustained…
Police Capture Shoeless, Disoriented Burlington Burglar In Bergen Home Police Capture Shoeless, Disoriented Burlington Burglar In Bergen Home
Police Capture Shoeless, Disoriented Burlington Burglar In Bergen Home New Milford police captured a shoeless burglar who'd broken into a home Thursday afternoon in a remote neighborhood along the Hackensack River. The homeowner told police he and his family returned home shortly after 4:30 p.m. to find the intruder standing in a puddle in their driveway on dead-ended Steuben Avenue wearing a Spongebob Squarepants sweatshirt and no shoes, Detective Lt. Kevin Van Saders said. Aaron Warner, 19, of the Burlington County town of Browns Mills, entered the house through the front door as the resident called police, Van Saders said. Responding officers found him on …