Opioids Drive Highest Number Of OD Deaths Ever In US, While NJ Holds Steady, CDC Reports Opioids Drive Highest Number Of OD Deaths Ever In US, While NJ Holds Steady, CDC Reports
Opioids Drive Highest Number Of OD Deaths Ever In US, While NJ Holds Steady, CDC Reports Call it a statistical oddity: Despite an historic spike in drug overdose deaths across the United States last year, the total reported for New Jersey ticked up barely 1% over 2019 – compared with an increase of more than 32% in New York, over 17% in Pennsylvania and more than 10% in Connecticut, the CDC reported. More than 93,000 people across the country died from drug overdoses amid last year’s COVID-19 pandemic, according to the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. That total represented a 29.4% increase from the 72,151 deaths projected nationwide for 2019, according to an annual…
Man In $1M Meth Lab Bust, Pal Put Dead Body Under NJ Family's Doghouse, Police Say Man In $1M Meth Lab Bust, Pal Put Dead Body Under NJ Family's Doghouse, Police Say
Man In $1M Meth Lab Bust, Pal Put Dead Body Under NJ Family's Doghouse, Police Say Two Sussex County ex-cons have been accused of relocating human remains found in a Hopatcong home to a doghouse underneath a deck, authorities said. Brian Cheda-Hackembruch, 25, of Andover Township (who you may remember from his involvement in a $1 million meth lab raid), and Matthew R. Thomas, 27, of Newton had found the body of an individual who died of a medical emergency in a Hopatcong home, Andover Township police said. Instead of notifying officials, the pair loaded the victim into the trunk of his or her own vehicle, then hired a towing company to move the car to a street near West L…
TORNADO: Warnings Issued In New Jersey, Pennsylvania,  National Weather Service Says TORNADO: Warnings Issued In New Jersey, Pennsylvania,  National Weather Service Says
Tornado: Warnings Issued In New Jersey, Pennsylvania, National Weather Service Says Heads were spinning in parts of New Jersey and Pennsylvania on Thursday after a tornado warning was issued by the National Weather Service. The tornado warning included Burlington and Mercer counties was later expanded to parts of Monmouth County, the NWS said.  At one point, the tornado warning included Fairless Hills and Levittown in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. At one point, the tornado warning included Fairless Hills and Levittown in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.Twitter/ NWS Tornado There were no confirmed reports of any tornado touching down, major damage or injuries. However, initia…
BEWARE: Weather Service Warns Against Rip-Tide Swimming As Temperatures Rise BEWARE: Weather Service Warns Against Rip-Tide Swimming As Temperatures Rise
Beware: Weather Service Warns Against Rip-Tide Swimming As Temperatures Rise The National Weather Service is warning that there is a "high risk" of rip tide currents this weekend at New Jersey and Delaware beaches, just as temperatures are expected to climb up into the 90s. An offshore storm is expected to cause swells, making swimming potentially dangerous, according to forecasts. “Remember, the ocean water temperature is only around 60 degrees and many beaches are not yet staffed with lifeguards,” the NWS’s Mount Holly station said on Twitter.  The National Weather Service is warning weekend beachgoers that there could be rip currents in NJ and Delaware. Twit…
'We Need More Time On The Clock': Murphy Won't Be Ditching Face Masks So Soon 'We Need More Time On The Clock': Murphy Won't Be Ditching Face Masks So Soon
'We Need More Time On The Clock': Murphy Won't Be Ditching Face Masks So Soon New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy proved he isn't a follower. While state leaders in Connecticut, New York, Delaware and Pennsylvania are allowing fully-vaccinated individuals to ditch face masks inside in accordance with the CDC's new guidelines, Murphy says "not yet." "This is not forever and always," the governor said during Monday's COVID-19 press conference. "We just need more time on the clock." Citing Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden, Murphy said that the premature, widespread removal of mask mandates especially indoors could reignite the virus. There…
Ruthless But Reliable? Ransom Group Tied To Colonial Pipeline Hack Says They're Not Bad Guys Ruthless But Reliable? Ransom Group Tied To Colonial Pipeline Hack Says They're Not Bad Guys
Ruthless But Reliable? Ransom Group Tied To Colonial Pipeline Hack Says They're Not Bad Guys Darknet cyberhackers whose ransomware forced the shutdown of a 5,500-mile pipeline between New Jersey and Texas said Monday that they’re in it for the money and not to disrupt society. DarkSide, which popped up last summer, has presented itself as a band of online Robin Hoods who sell the tools to extort businesses and organizations to cyber-burglars and then donate a portion of their take to charitable organizations. It remained unclear exactly who targeted the Colonial Pipeline on Friday, jamming an estimate 2.5 million daily barrels of jet fuel, gasoline and other refined product deliver…
COVID-19: Pfizer Nearing Release Of Vaccine For Children Ages 12 -15, FDA Says COVID-19: Pfizer Nearing Release Of Vaccine For Children Ages 12 -15, FDA Says
Covid-19: Pfizer Nearing Release Of Vaccine For Children Ages 12 -15, FDA Says The U.S. Food and Drug Administration could authorize Pfizer-BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine for children ages 12 to 15 as early as next week, the New York Times reported on Monday, citing federal officials.  The timing could not be better for school districts that are resuming in-person instruction and hoping for a full return to normalcy next fall.  Vaccinating children is also a crucial element in achieving heard immunity and decreasing numbers of hospitalizations and deaths, The Times says.  While NJ, NY and CT positive rates have been dropping, other states including Pen…
Police: Stolen Gun, Drugs Seized From Philly Couple In Hackensack Stop Police: Stolen Gun, Drugs Seized From Philly Couple In Hackensack Stop
Police: Stolen Gun, Drugs Seized From Philly Couple In Hackensack Stop Hackensack detectives found a Philadelphia couple carrying a stolen handgun and drugs during a traffic stop, authorities said. Narcotics Squad Detectives Kley Peralta and Reuven Lyak stopped the 2015 Acura sedan at the intersection of River and Kansas streets for equipment violations shortly before 7:30 p.m. Monday, Detective Capt. Daniel DeWitt said. The driver, Darinel Perez-Burgos, 28, “had a suspended driver's license and said he did not know who owned the car,” DeWitt said. The passenger, 21-year-old dental assistant Jelayna Sevilla, “provided a suspended Delaware driver's license and…
Feds: Ex-South Jersey Lawyer Gambled Away Investor’s $2.4M In Phony Eagles Season Tix Scheme Feds: Ex-South Jersey Lawyer Gambled Away Investor’s $2.4M In Phony Eagles Season Tix Scheme
Feds: Ex-South Jersey Lawyer Gambled Away Investor’s $2.4M In Phony Eagles Season Tix Scheme A disgraced South Jersey attorney with a confessed gambling habit was busted by federal agents for conning an investor out of $2.4 million in a loan scheme involving supposed Philadelphia Eagles season ticket holders, authorities said. Frank N. Tobolsky, 59, of Cherry Hill told the Delaware investor he was funding loans for clients using season ticket licenses as collateral, an indictment returned in U.S. District Court in Camden says. There were no clients, it says. Tobolsky gambled “a substantial portion” of the money at Atlantic City casinos, among other personal uses, Acting U.S. Attor…
‘Beautiful Soul' Bergen Native,  16, Killed In Delaware Crash ‘Beautiful Soul' Bergen Native,  16, Killed In Delaware Crash
‘Beautiful Soul' Bergen Native, 16, Killed In Delaware Crash A funeral service for Margaret "Maggie" Browne, a 16-year-old Wyckoff native who was killed in an ATV crash in Delaware this week, will be streamed from the church. “I not only knew this beautiful soul but I got the chance to coach her,” wrote Brianna Johnson of the Shore Pride All Stars competitive cheerleading team in Millsboro, DE. “She was definitely one of a kind. Words cannot explain how everyone is feeling.” The team itself wrote that Maggie, who’d previously been with the CC Champs of Waldwick, “brought a smile to everyone she was around and was a friend to anyone she came in c…
Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’ Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’
Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’ UPDATE: A heavily-armed fugitive who held tactical officers at bay for nearly seven hours at a Secaucus hotel told police that he was “prepared for war” and “ready to die,” the U.S. attorney for New Jersey said Monday. ATF agents charged Rahim Harris, 42, of Maplewood, with being a convicted felon in possession of weapons and ammo, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced. His wife, Haneefha White, 39, of Pottsville, PA, who was with him, is charged with aiding and abetting the possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon. Authorities said they found eight loaded wea…
Paterson PD: Detectives Seize Passenger With Loaded Gun Tucked Into Waistband Paterson PD: Detectives Seize Passenger With Loaded Gun Tucked Into Waistband
Paterson PD: Detectives Seize Passenger With Loaded Gun Tucked Into Waistband A passenger in a vehicle stopped by Paterson police detectives had a loaded handgun with a high-capacity magazine tucked into his waistband, authorities said Friday. Detectives Yamil Pimienta and Mohammed Bashir stopped the Hyundai bearing a temporary Delaware license plate for a traffic violation near Summer and Van Houten streets shortly before 9 p.m. Thursday, Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale said. As they approached, Pimienta saw city resident Rashawn Pelham, 22, try to conceal what turned out to be a .380-caliber Bersa pistol, he said. The detectives quickly seized Pelham, took h…