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Federal Court

Bergen County Wife Destroyed Phone To Obstruct Feds In Husband's High-Profile Probe: Officials Bergen County Wife Destroyed Phone To Obstruct Feds In Husband's High-Profile Probe: Officials
Bergen County Wife Destroyed Phone To Obstruct Feds In Husband's High-Profile Probe: Officials Federal authorities have charged the wife of a Bergen County celebrity house flipper with trying to obstruct an investigation into her husband’s alleged multimillion-dollar Ponzi-like real estate scheme. Jennifer Iturralde Pina, 43, of Franklin Lakes, is accused of attempting to stop a witness from cooperating with investigators and destroying one of her phones as federal agents arrived to seize it, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said this week. The alleged obstruction is linked to an ongoing investigation involving her husband, Cesar Humberto Pina, 45, a real estate influencer better kn…
Accused Pelosi Laptop Thief's Dad Convicted Of Child Abuse One Year After NJ Defamation Case Accused Pelosi Laptop Thief's Dad Convicted Of Child Abuse One Year After NJ Defamation Case
Accused Pelosi Laptop Thief's Dad Convicted Of Child Abuse One Year After NJ Defamation Case The father of a Pennsylvania woman who was accused of stealing Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's laptop was convicted of sexually abusing a girl on Wednesday, Oct. 30 — just two days after the trial began, according to court documents and the Dauphin County District Attorney's office.  Rickey Williams, 55, — a security guard from Dauphin County — touched the girl when she was between the ages of 8 and 18. Judge William T. presided over the trial.  She came forward about the abuse within two weeks after police allegedly caught him soliciting a video of a 14-ye…
Belgian National Tried Breaking Into Cockpit On Flight From Newark Airport To Switzerland: Feds Belgian National Tried Breaking Into Cockpit On Flight From Newark Airport To Switzerland: Feds
Belgian National Tried Breaking Into Cockpit On Flight From Newark Airport To Switzerland: Feds A 43-year-old Belgian national is facing federal charges for trying to break into the cockpit of plane and assaulting flight attendants during a flight from Newark Liberty International Airport to Zurich, Switzerland, in March 2024, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said. Jan Daeninck, 43, was a passenger aboard a Swiss International Airlines flight on March 31 when, shortly after takeoff, he walked up to a female flight attendant, grabbed both of her breasts with his hands, shook her, and began yelling at her, according to witnesses and statements made in court.  After the flig…
CPA Firefighting Hero From Bergen Admits Role In $650,000 Tax Dodge CPA Firefighting Hero From Bergen Admits Role In $650,000 Tax Dodge
CPA Firefighting Hero From Bergen Admits Role In $650,000 Tax Dodge 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: A decorated veteran Bergen County firefighter admitted in federal court on Wednesday that he and his business partner conducted a blatant tax dodge on behalf of a bunch of construction companies that employed their New York accounting firm. Jack N. Sardis, 66, of Englewood Cliffs admitted that he schemed to con the IRS with his partner, George Sanossian, 70, of Scarsdale, out of a small CPA office in a massive Westchester County shopping center. Sardis also offered to do business elsewhere, telling one client "I can meet you at my firehouse,” according to an IRS complaint. The clie…
Former South Jersey Nurse Admits Collecting Porn Of Children As Young As 12 Former South Jersey Nurse Admits Collecting Porn Of Children As Young As 12
Former South Jersey Nurse Admits Collecting Porn Of Children As Young As 12 An Atlantic County man admitted collecting child porn videos and still images, some involving sadistic or masochistic violence against victims as young as 12, federal authorities said. Special agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark caught Anthony Barbarino, 37, with 108 videos and 93 still photographs of child sexual abuse across three electronic devices, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. At least one image was of a prepubescent minor, while another "portrayed sadistic or masochistic conduct or other depictions of violence," Sellinger said. Barbarino, who live…
NJ Data Analyst Admits Trafficking Child Porn NJ Data Analyst Admits Trafficking Child Porn
NJ Data Analyst Admits Trafficking Child Porn A data analyst from Somerset County admitted in federal court in Trenton on Thursday that he trafficked videos and other images of child pornography. Marcevan Manasse, 28, of Somerville, was nabbed following an undercover operation, authorities said. Detectives accessed five video files and 11 images containing child sexual abuse from an IP address at Manasse’s home, a complaint on file in U.S. District Court in Trenton says. The files included “multiple visual depictions of pre-pubescent children being sexually abused by adults” that he ended up sharing over the course of more than two ye…
US Airman From NJ In Home Detention For Collecting Child Porn Does It Again, FBI Says US Airman From NJ In Home Detention For Collecting Child Porn Does It Again, FBI Says
US Airman From NJ In Home Detention For Collecting Child Porn Does It Again, FBI Says A disgraced U.S. airman from South Jersey was finishing out a federal prison term in home detention for collecting child pornography when he used his iPhone to do it again, the FBI charged. Kyle Daniel Reese, 29, of Williamstown in Gloucester County, was discharged from the Air Force after federal agents said they found several videos and more than 600 photos of child pornography on his PC while he was stationed at the Barksdale Air Force Base in northwest Louisiana in 2015. Reese took a deal from the government rather than risk the potential consequences of a trial and was sentenced t…
Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds
Delaware Man Admits Peddling Heroin In NJ: Feds A Delaware man admitted in federal court that he sold heroin in New Jersey, authorities said. Carl L. Jones, 49, of Newport, did business with "a confidential source who was working with law enforcement" in a commercial parking lot in Mount Laurel on March 29, 2019, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. According to Sellinger, Jones sold the informant a pound and a half of a a "mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of heroin." Jones took a deal from the government rather than risk the potential consequences of a guilty verdict at a trial, pleading to drug po…
Final Defendant In Trenton Police Car Firebombing Gets 27 Months In Fed Pen Final Defendant In Trenton Police Car Firebombing Gets 27 Months In Fed Pen
Final Defendant In Trenton Police Car Firebombing Gets 27 Months In Fed Pen UPDATE: A Trenton man who threw a makeshift Molotov cocktail into a city police vehicle following a protest was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison. Kadeem A. Dockery, 31, is the last of four defendants sentenced in U.S. District Court in connection with the May 31, 2020 protest in Trenton. Video captured by surveillance cameras and personal cellphones helped authorities identify Dockery, who was arrested a little over two months later, and Killian F Melecio, 22, of Columbus, NJ. Rather than face trial, Dockery took a deal from the government, pleading guilty in May 2021 to attemptin…
Gun Manufacturer Remington Settles With Sandy Hook Families For $73M Gun Manufacturer Remington Settles With Sandy Hook Families For $73M
Gun Manufacturer Remington Settles With Sandy Hook Families For $73M Families of five children and four adults killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting reached a historic $73 million settlement with gun manufacturer Remington, officials announced. Attorneys for the families who filed the suit against the now-bankrupt Remington and its four insurers, announced on Tuesday, Feb. 15 that they had reached the settlement, representing the first time a gun manufacturer has been held liable for a mass shooting in the US. As part of the settlement, lawyers for the families said that Remington agreed to release thousands of pages of internal company do…
Pagans Leader From Long Island Gets Nearly 3 Years For Gun Found In NJ Stop Following PA Party Pagans Leader From Long Island Gets Nearly 3 Years For Gun Found In NJ Stop Following PA Party
Pagans Leader From Long Island Gets Nearly 3 Years For Gun Found In NJ Stop Following PA Party UPDATE: The former national president of the Pagans was sentenced Thursday to a plea-bargained 33 months in federal prison for having a gun while returning home through New Jersey from a party in Pennsylvania. Keith Richter – a 62-year-old ex-con known as “Conan the Barbarian” – was returning to his Bay Shore (Suffolk County) home from a Pagan's Motorcycle Club party in Lancaster, PA when he was stopped in Mercer County this past February. Police found him carrying a loaded .45-caliber Ruger P345 handgun, Acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Rachael A. Honig said. Rather than risk trial, Ri…
Feds: Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars From Bergen Tour Company Feds: Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars From Bergen Tour Company
Feds: Bean Counter Admits Embezzling Hundreds Of Thousands Of Dollars From Bergen Tour Company 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…
Ex-Con Carjacker Who Was Run Over, Pinned By Newark Police Car Takes Plea In Federal Court Ex-Con Carjacker Who Was Run Over, Pinned By Newark Police Car Takes Plea In Federal Court
Ex-Con Carjacker Who Was Run Over, Pinned By Newark Police Car Takes Plea In Federal Court A Newark ex-con who was run over and pinned by a city police car as he tried to flee an armed carjacking took a guilty plea in federal court on Tuesday, authorities said. Jared Walker, 24, had to be rescued after being run over while hiding in snow-covered grass shortly after 2 a.m. on Jan. 6, 2020. Walker had just taken a 2008 Ford E-350 van at gunpoint from its driver, who eventually managed to escape and call police, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. Walker hit a police car and several other vehicles with the van before crashing through a fence and into a parking lot, authorit…
Pagans Motorcycle Gang Leader From Long Island Takes Plea On NJ Gun Charge Following PA Party Pagans Motorcycle Gang Leader From Long Island Takes Plea On NJ Gun Charge Following PA Party
Pagans Motorcycle Gang Leader From Long Island Takes Plea On NJ Gun Charge Following PA Party The former national president of the outlaw Pagans motorcycle gang took a guilty plea in federal court on Wednesday after police caught him with a gun in New Jersey while returning to his Long Island home from a party in Pennsylvania. Keith Richter – a 62-year-old ex-con known as “Conan the Barbarian” – was returning to his Bay Shore (Suffolk County) home from a Pagan's Motorcycle Club party in Lancaster, PA when he was stopped in Mercer County on Feb. 20. Police found him carrying a loaded .45-caliber Ruger P345 handgun, Acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Rachael A. Honig said. Rath…
Grandparent Scam: Here’s How Pair From PA, NY Stole $300,000 From Elderly Victims Across US Grandparent Scam: Here’s How Pair From PA, NY Stole $300,000 From Elderly Victims Across US
Grandparent Scam: Here’s How Pair From PA, NY Stole $300,000 From Elderly Victims Across US At least 50 elderly victims across the United States were conned out of more than $300,000 by a ring of grandparent scammers who included a Pennsylvania woman and New York City man who confessed in federal court. Jacqueline Velazquez, 37, of Reading, and Daniel Duran, 33, of Queens played key roles in the phone and email-based scheme, Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams said. Here’s how it worked, Williams said: Co-schemers based in the Dominican Republic called elderly victims throughout the U.S. Posing as a grandchild, or the grandchild’s attorney, they claimed they’d been j…
Pair Admit Violent Gunpoint Carjacking Of Female Uber Driver In Newark Pair Admit Violent Gunpoint Carjacking Of Female Uber Driver In Newark
Pair Admit Violent Gunpoint Carjacking Of Female Uber Driver In Newark An accused carjacker admitted Monday that he helped a gunman drag an Uber driver from her car and throw her to the ground in Newark before they drove off with the vehicle. Rakeem McNair, 21, of Roselle, took a guilty plea in federal court in Newark less than two weeks after an accomplice, city resident Raquin Tanner, 25, confessed to his own role in the Aug. 13, 2019 carjacking. The victim was in the driver’s seat of her parked car on Summer Avenue in Newark around 11 o’clock that night when three thugs approached, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig said. Video surveillance shows Tanner ap…
Jersey Shore Con Man, 73, Gets Three Years, Son Probation For $4M Insurance Scam Jersey Shore Con Man, 73, Gets Three Years, Son Probation For $4M Insurance Scam
Jersey Shore Con Man, 73, Gets Three Years, Son Probation For $4M Insurance Scam A 73-year-old Asbury Park man was sentenced to three years in state prison while his son got probation for an insurance scam that netted them $4 million, authorities said. Frank Pescatore, 73, and his son, former life insurance agent Evan Pescatore, 38, of Highlands finagled 18 policies with a combined face value of $61.5 million from eight insurance companies by paying the premiums, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said Wednesday. The process of providing applicants and insureds with a no-cost inducement to apply for life insurance policies by paying their premiums is known as “reba…
Feds: Second Reputed Mob Associate Admits Role In Jersey Shore Drug Operation Feds: Second Reputed Mob Associate Admits Role In Jersey Shore Drug Operation
Feds: Second Reputed Mob Associate Admits Role In Jersey Shore Drug Operation A Toms River man on Thursday became the second reputed associate of the DeCavalcante crime family to take a plea deal from the government in connection with a Jersey Shore drug bust. Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office discovered several ounces of coke during a warranted search of the home of Jason Vella, 39, in September 2019, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said. Also arrested in the takedown was Mario Galli III, 28, also of Toms River, who was sentenced in July to more than six plea-bargained years in federal prison for a pound of cocaine and a 9mm FEG Model PGK-9HP gun lo…
UPDATE: 'Bomb Carrying' Bergen, Rockland, Dutchess Bank Robber Stole $233,000, Feds Say UPDATE: 'Bomb Carrying' Bergen, Rockland, Dutchess Bank Robber Stole $233,000, Feds Say
Update: 'Bomb Carrying' Bergen, Rockland, Dutchess Bank Robber Stole $233,000, Feds Say UPDATE: A 29-year-old Airmont man captured by a team of law enforcement agents on Tuesday robbed four banks in Bergen, Rockland and Dutchess counties of $233,000 in all, often by claiming to have a bomb and once by pointing what appeared to be a weapon, authorities said. Yosef Ziegler was taken into custody in Airmont early Tuesday by a team of federal agents and law enforcement officersfrom the jurisdictions where the banks were robbed -- among them, investigators from the FBI and Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. Ziegler held up the four banks in the two states over a 10-month period be…
Man Admits Extorting Professional Morris County Athlete With Naked Photos, Report Says Man Admits Extorting Professional Morris County Athlete With Naked Photos, Report Says
Man Admits Extorting Professional Morris County Athlete With Naked Photos, Report Says A man pleaded guilty to extorting a Morris County-based professional athlete with naked and sexually explicit photos, the DailyRecord reports. Patrick M. Avognon Jr. was represented by a public defender and tested positive for marijuana at federal court in Newark Monday, when he admitted to demanding $5,600 from the athlete and threatening to post nude photos of him to a website if he failed to do so, the article says. The victim, who was not identified, was forced to hire a lawyer and a private investigator, who turned evidence of the extortion over to law enforcement, DailyRecord say…
Scotch Plains Man Admits To Embezzling $1.4M Scotch Plains Man Admits To Embezzling $1.4M
Scotch Plains Man Admits To Embezzling $1.4M The former court-appointed administrator of a Westchester estate has admitted to stealing more than a million dollars from it as a family member sought to remove him from the position. New Jersey resident Gregory Bayard has pleaded guilty in White Plains federal court to one count of wire fraud for stealing $1.4 million from a decedent’s estate in Mount Vernon while acting as a court-appointed administrator. Bayard was appointed the administrator of the estate of a former Mount Vernon resident by the Surrogate’s Court in 2008, which included collecting the assets of the estate. As the admin…
Feds: Crooked Paterson Cops Stole Guns, Cash In Illegal Stops, Searches Feds: Crooked Paterson Cops Stole Guns, Cash In Illegal Stops, Searches
Feds: Crooked Paterson Cops Stole Guns, Cash In Illegal Stops, Searches PATERSON, N.J. – The FBI on Wednesday arrested two Paterson police officers – one of whom they said accepted a gun in exchange for reducing charges against a suspect – for pocketing cash and valuables during illegal traffic stops and searches, authorities said. City Officers Jonathan Bustios and Eudy Ramos stopped vehicles, “detained the occupants and searched those vehicles without any justification,” U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said. “On certain occasions, Bustios and Ramos also took cash and other items without justification before releasing the detained occupants,” Carpenito said. Bu…
Ex-Con Gets 11+ Years For $2,000 Passaic Nightclub Robbery Ex-Con Gets 11+ Years For $2,000 Passaic Nightclub Robbery
Ex-Con Gets 11+ Years For $2,000 Passaic Nightclub Robbery PASSAIC, N.J. -- An ex-con who admitted robbing a Passaic nightclub of $26,084 at gunpoint with two accomplices was sentenced Friday in federal court in Newark to more than 11 years in prison. Because there's no parole in the federal prison system, 29-year-old Keontrae “Taz” Lawrence of South Orange must serve just about all of the sentence. Both Lawrence and another confessed accomplice -- Shaheed "Abbo" Blamahsah, also of South Orange – made the employee dump the contents of two safes into two purses at gunpoint and then count to 100 as the trio left the club on Sept. 6, 2015. …
Feds: Couple Caught In Paterson Selling 'Oxy' Pills That Were Really Heroin Feds: Couple Caught In Paterson Selling 'Oxy' Pills That Were Really Heroin
Feds: Couple Caught In Paterson Selling 'Oxy' Pills That Were Really Heroin PATERSON, N.J. -- DEA agents seized a Pennsylvania couple who they said sold tens of thousands of what looked like oxycodone tablets that actually contained heroin to an undercover investigator in Paterson. A federal judge in Newark on Thursday ordered Francisco Perez, 31, detained and 33-year-old Nadia Moronta Pena released on a $150,000 unsecured bond. The Hazleton, PA couple are charged with conspiring to distribute heroin in bulk. Investigators pursuing the manufacture and sale of opioids and other drugs in New Jersey got a tip that Perez was illegally selling oxy, U.S. Attorney Craig …