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Friday, apr 26
Police & Fire
National Guardsman Who Led 2-Day FBI Search In NJ Admits Pepper-Spraying Police At Capitol Riot
A military police officer who led federal officials in a two-day search across a New Jersey neighborhood has pleaded guilty for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Gregory Yetman, 47, of Helmetta, pleaded guilty to assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with physical contact before U.S. District Chief Judge James E. Boasberg. Yetman, an enlisted military police officer with the U. S. Army National Guard, traveled to Washington, D.C., on Jan 6. 2021, and attended a rally for then-President Trump at the Ellipse, court documents show. After the rally, Yetman walked to…
Police & Fire
Accused NJ Burglar Arrested In PA Traffic Stop: Police
A routine traffic stop led to two arrests in Bensalem, township police said in a release. Officers stopped a Chevrolet Tahoe for a faulty brake light, a broken mirror, and a suspended registration on Saturday, April 13, authorities said. Police said the driver, 33-year-old Brittany Dougherty of Philadelphia, was found to have a warrant for theft at a Bensalem Kohl's, a warrant for burglary in Camden, New Jersey, and a warrant for robbery out of Evesham, New Jersey. The passenger, 30-year-old Omar Pedro of Philadelphia, was wanted for retail theft, authorities said.&n…
Police & Fire
NJ Killer With Manifesto, Step-By-Step Murder Plan Indicted By Grand Jury: Somerset Prosecutor
A Somerset County grand jury has indicted a 27-year-old man for the killing of a young woman in January. On Thursday, April 25, David C. Shroitman was indicted for the Jan. 30 murder of 27-year-old Mary Rose Fealey in Somerville, Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald announced. Maryrose Fealey Maryrose Fealey Facebook Fealey, a Somerville resident, was found by Somerville police responding to a 911 call, outside a residential complex on North Bridge Street She had been returning home from a local business, the passenger door of her car wide open with her belongings spread …
Police & Fire
Former NJ Middle School Teacher Sexually Assaulted Student: Prosecutor
A 32-year-old former teacher from North Bergen has been charged with sexually assaulting a student at Carteret Middle School, authorities said. Jeffrey Munguia was also charged on Wednesday, April 24 with endangering the welfare of a child, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Carterest Police Chief Dennis McFadden. The investigation revealed that Munguia was the victim’s teacher at Carteret Middle School when the incident occurred in 2022, they said. He was arrested without incident on Wednesday. The investigation is active and continuing. An…
Police & Fire
Driver Runs Red Light Causing Somerset County Crash: Police
A 32-year-old Hillsborough resident was injured in a car crash in Montgomery on the morning of Tuesday, April 23, when the driver of the other vehicle ran a red light, authorities said. At 7:35 a.m., a 2017 Mini Cooper was driven by a 40-year-old Princeton resident was heading westbound on Cherry Valley Road when it failed to stop for a red light and struck a 2023 Kia Forte that had entered the intersection going southbound on Great Road, Montgomery police said. The driver of a Kia complained of head pain and was evaluated on scene by EMS, police said. The Princeton resident was issued a su…
Police & Fire
NJ Couple Convicted Of Turning Immigrants Into Slaves
UPDATE: A South Jersey couple was convicted of forcing a pair of undocumented immigrants into slavery after luring them to America. Bolaji Bolarinwa, 50, and Isiaka Bolarinwa, 67, of Moorestown were discovered when one of the victims told her college professor, who alerted the FBI, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip Sellinger said. Originally from Nigeria, the couple were living in New Jersey as U.S. citizens when they recruited two victims to follow them, Sellinger said. They "engaged in an egregious bait-and-switch, luring the victims with false promises of a life and an education …
Police & Fire
NJ Feds: Repeat Child Porn Collector Satisfied 'Deviant Desires' With Chats, More
A convicted NJ child porn collector had only just been released from federal prison when investigators said he tried buying kids’ shoes on Facebook Marketplace. And that wasn’t all they said that Andrew Chu, 33, of Edison was up to. Authorities who examined Chu’s laptop and cellphone reported finding more than 100 pornographic images of naked underage girls. They also found live chats that Chu had with naked underage minors while masturbating, a complaint filed in federal court in Newark by U.S. Homeland Security Investigations says. One of them was only 11 years old, agents sa…
Police & Fire
Local NJ Police Sergeant Took Child Porn Images From Investigation For Himself: AG
A local South Jersey police sergeant cherry-picked child porn images for himself from a case that his department was investigating, a grand jury indictment charges. Suspended Vineland Police Officer Christopher Ortiz, 39, of Estell Manor "requested from a subordinate and obtained via email" at least 17 images from a child pornography investigation for unauthorized use, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. All told, investigators found that Ortiz "possessed, viewed, or had under his control at least 100 items depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of children," the attorney …
Police & Fire
John David Smith III Dateline NBC Fran Gladden-Smith
A convicted killer facing new charges in connection with his second wife's death in Mercer County will be featured in a two-hour broadcast titled "Chameleon" on Dateline NBC on Friday, April 26. John David Smith III has served 20 years in an Ohio prison for the murder of his first wife. Now, he faces murder charges in New Jersey for killing his second wife, Fran Gladden-Smith, 33 years ago in West Windsor. At 9 p.m. Friday, Dateline NBC said it will reveal a "gripping investigation exposing (the) man suspected of multiple murders." Victims' relatives and detectives who put Smith behin…
Police & Fire
Ex-Con Sentenced For Home Invasion, Sexually Assaulting Woman In Asbury Park: Prosecutors
An Asbury Park ex-convict will spend more than three decades in prison after he was convicted of a home invasion and sexual assault, authorities said. Shawn Connolly, 37, was sentenced on Tuesday, Apr. 23 to 40 years in prison, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced in a news release. He'll be eligible for parole after 34 years under the No Early Release Act. Asbury Park police responded to a home on Seventh Avenue just before 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021. Officers immediately found Connolly, arrested him, and recovered what he stole from his pockets. Investigat…
Police & Fire
Man Convicted Again Of Murdering, Torching NJ Woman, 70, For Money
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: Questionable DNA evidence found under the fingernails of a 70-year-old Bergen County woman bludgeoned and burned in her home may have gotten her killer a new trial, but it didn't change the outcome. For a second time, a jury in Hackensack convicted Daniel Rochat on Wednesday of all charges in the brutal September 2012 slaying of real estate agent Barbara Vernieri in her East Rutherford home. Rochat, 48, of Wood-Ridge was originally convicted in June 2017 of beating Vernieri, then pouring gasoline on her and around her home before setting it on fire to cover up the crime scene. Pros…
Police & Fire
Video Shows Target Worker Interrupting Shoplifters In South Jersey
Three women nearly got away with $581 in merchandise before they were stopped by a Target employee in Camden County, authorities said. On Monday, April 22, at approximately 5:30 p.m. the three pictured suspects entered the Target store on Berlin Cross Keys Road, Gloucester Township police said. All three suspects gathered up merchandise and placed it into a cart, police said. A suspect with the pink coat exited the store and parked a silver Jeep SUV, with an unknown temporary NJ license plate and spare front right tire, out front of the store. The other two suspects approached the r…
Police & Fire
Gas Attendant Stole Thousands From Customers At Central Jersey Wawa: Prosecutors
A former Monmouth County gas station attendant was accused of stealing thousands of dollars from customers, authorities said. Patrick Brown, 48, of Newark, was indicted by a grand jury on 52 counts, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced in a news release on Wednesday, Apr. 24. He was charged with 13 counts each of third-degree credit card fraud, third-degree false uttering, third-degree theft, and fourth-degree credit card theft. Freehold Township police said the thefts at the Wawa on Route 9 North happened "during a limited amount of time" in August 2023. Bro…
Police & Fire
Watch
This
: Enraged Driver From NJ Mounts Mid-Manhattan Sidewalk Aiming For Pedestrian
An enraged New Jersey driver was recorded trying to run down a shirtless man in broad daylight on a midtown Manhattan sidewalk. The wild road rage pursuit continued up West 39th Street near Seventh Avenue before the driver left his Ford Taurus with three wheels on the sidewalk and confronted his target, footage shared by What Is New York on Instagram shows. "Call the cops! Calls the cops!" the man shouts. The pedestrian -- whose pants are down around his thighs, exposing red boxer shorts -- responds, then tries to duck into a building. A man at the door shoves him back onto the street. T…
Police & Fire
Threatening Bathroom Graffiti Temporarily Closes Private NJ School As Police Investigate
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: Police were reviewing security video to determine who's responsible for a threat specifically mentioning Blacks and Hispanics that was found scrawled on a bathroom wall at Dwight-Englewood School. The K-12 school was closed on Wednesday, April 24, following the discovery earlier in the week of a message that investigators said threatens to "get even." The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office was alerted and police in Englewood are working the case, assisted by the county sheriff's forensics team, which collected evidence. "There's concern right now considering what just recently trans…
Police & Fire
Gloucester County Opens New Center To Fight Abuse Against Children
A new Child Advocacy Center has opened in Gloucester County to deal with the steady rise in abuse and neglect cases, authorities said. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new center at 432 Glover St. in Woodbury took place on Tuesday, April 23. Local prosecutors said they found the need for a larger space necessary due to a rise in the number of crimes against children during and following the coronavirus pandemic. Child abuse and neglect cases rose from 3,334 cases in 2000 to 4,355 last year in Gloucester County, according to the Rutgers University School of Social Work. Statewi…
Police & Fire
She's Leaving Home: End Of Marriage Triggers Uneventful Mahwah 'Standoff'
A SWAT team and other tactical units responded to a Mahwah home Tuesday afternoon after a resident expressed concern over suicidal comments she told police her husband had made, authorities confirmed. Fortunately, they weren't needed. The woman went to police headquarters early Tuesday afternoon, April 23, concerned over her husband's response when she said she was leaving him, responders said. A quick check determined that there are weapons in the home in the northeast section known as Cragmere near the Rockland County border. Out of "an overabundance of caution," Mahwah Police Chief Tim…
Police & Fire
Camden County Man Arrested In Fatal Shooting: Prosecutor
A 21-year-old man from Gloucester Township has been arrested by U.S. Marshals in connection with a fatal shooting last week, authorities said. Hasan Battie was taken into custody on Monday, April 22 in Camden, according to Camden County Prosecutor Grace C. MacAulay Battie has been charged with first-degree murder and weapons offenses, she said. On Tuesday, April 16, at approximately 5:30 p.m., Gloucester Township Police officers were dispatched to a residence in the LaCascata development for a report of a person shot. Police found a male victim later identified as…
Police & Fire
Camden Man Gets 55 Years Prison For Fatal Shooting
A 21-year-old Camden City man has been sentenced to 55 years in New Jersey State Prison for killing a Philadelphia man, authorities said. Antony Shields was sentenced on Friday, April 19, according to Camden County Prosecutor Grace C. MacAulay. He must serve 85 percent of the sentence before becoming eligible for parole. On Jan. 30, 2024, a jury convicted Shields of first-degree Felony Murder, first-degree Aggravated Manslaughter, and second-degree Conspiracy to Commit Robbery in connection to the death of Alex Fernandez, also 21. On Feb. 4, 2021, the Camden County Police De…
Police & Fire
Cold Case Murder Leroy Julious Ewing NJ
UPDATE: Leroy Julious had planned on whipping up a celebratory dinner after cashing a bonus check from his cook's job at The College of New Jersey when his brutally beaten body was found in a gravel lot across the street from his Ewing home. Julious's murder went unsolved for 16 years -- until authorities announced that technological advances and a shared mission among various agencies and law enforcement forensic experts cracked the cold case. Breyon Goodman, 36, of Trenton, and Jason Howard, 41, of Providence, R.I. killed Julious during a robbery near his Ewing home on May 9, 2008, t…
Police & Fire
Breyon Goodman Jason Howard Cold Case Arrests
Two men have been charged with murder in connection with a 2008 robbery and fatal beating, authorities said. Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri announced the cold case arrests on Monday, April 22 in connection with the death of Leroy Julious of Ewing Township. Breyon Goodman, 36, of Trenton, and Jason Howard, 41, are each charged with murder, felony murder and robbery, they said. Goodman was arrested in Trenton on April 15 by U.S. Marshals. Howard was served his complaints in Rhode Island, where he is incarcerated for an un…
Police & Fire
Gotcha
! Federal, State Team Seize Local Man, 24, In Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism
UPDATE: An elite law enforcement team captured a 24-year-old local man on Monday who authorities said broke in and trashed the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University in New Brunswick earlier this month. Jacob Beacher was due for an initial afternoon appearance on federal hate crime charges in U.S. District Court in Newark on April 22. Beacher broke into the CILRU shortly after 2:30 a.m. April 10 and did an estimated $40,000 worth of damage, state and federal authorities said. It was during the Eid-al-Fitr -- the Islamic holiday commemorating the end of sunrise-to-dusk fasting during…
Police & Fire
Alton Smith Levittown
A 30-year-old Pennsylvania man standing along the side of the New Jersey Turnpike after a collision was struck and killed by a passing car early Monday, April 22, authorities said. Alton Smith, of Levittown, PA, had bee driving a BMW 328i when he got into a crash with another BMW around 2:20 a.m. in Robbinsville, New Jersey State Police said. Smith was standing outside of his vehicle on the southbound side of the highway near milepost 64.1 on the inner roadway, when a passing Hyundai struck him and the back of his car, police said. Smith died while the driver of the Hyundai susta…
Police & Fire
West Windsor Man, 28, Among 3 Killed In Fiery Crash
Authorities have identified the three people killed in a fiery crash on Route 1 in South Brunswick earlier this month. Charisse Nelson-Bailey, 24, Daniel Vida, 28, and Maria Passalaris, 25, all died in the Friday, April 12 crash near Ridge Road, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said. Just after the 9:40 a.m. accident, police said a van had been struck by a tractor-trailer before the van collided with two other vehicles. Both the tractor-trailer and van then caught fire. Nelson-Bailey, of Princeton Junction, was identified as the van's driver. The other two victim…
Police & Fire
Family Of Eight Displaced After Central Jersey House Fire
A family of eight people was displaced after a home caught fire in Monmouth County, authorities said. Manalapan police responded to the fire at a home on Paddington Court at around 7:38 p.m. on Friday, Apr. 19, a department spokesperson said. Flames and smoke were reportedly coming from the house's laundry room. Firefighters from Gordons Corner, Englishtown, Freehold, and Marlboro were able to put out the fire. No injuries were reported. The New Jersey chapter of the American Red Cross said a family of eight was displaced. Volunteers were helping the family with immediate needs like tempor…
Police & Fire
Arsonist, 44, Charged In South Jersey Church Fire: Police
A 44-year-old man has been charged with arson in connection with a blaze that broke out at a South Jersey church, police said. Brian Cannon is believed to have set fire to the Colonial Manor United Methodist Church on Elberne Avenue in West Deptford on Friday, April 20, local police said. He was charged with two counts of arson and aggravated assault. Multiple fire companies responded to the church around 6:40 a.m. Friday. One firefighter was hospitalized with an injury suffered fighting the blaze, and has since been released.
Police & Fire
Fire Closes NJ Mall For Weekend
A mall in South Jersey will be closed through the weekend due to a fire. The fire broke out in the food court of Voorhees Town Center on Friday evening, April 18, local firefighters said. Last night, Quint and Engine 68 responded mutual aid into Voorhees for a building fire at The Voorhees Town Center. ... Posted by Gibbsboro Fire Company #1 on Saturday, April 20, 2024 While no injuries were reported, the mall said it would be closed through the weekend and reopen on Monday, April 22.
Police & Fire
Sprinter Van Strikes Pedestrian, 27, On White Horse Pike: Police
A 27-year-old man was hospitalized after being struck by a car on White Horse Pike in Winslow Township Saturday night, April 20, police said. The Hammonton man was struck by a 46-year-old New York City man in a Mercedes Benz sprinter van near Ehrke Road around 9:45 p.m. The pedestrian was taken to Cooper Hospital for treatment.
Police & Fire
Horrific
: NJ Retiree, 73, Collected Sexual Images Of Children As Young As 4: Sheriff
A 73-year-old retiree was caught with more than 1,500 images of naked children as young as four years old engaged in sex -- and investigators suspect there may be more, Acting Passaic County Sheriff Gary Giardina said. Working from a tip, members of Giardina's Internet Crime Against Children Task Force discovered that Edward W. Herbst Jr. of Bloomingdale had uploaded sexual images of youngsters between four and six years old and was looking for more, the sheriff said. They arrested him on Thursday, April 18, while seizing various electronic devices from his home, Giardina said. A…
Police & Fire
New Jersey Rabbi Who Hired Hitmen To Kill Wife Over Affair Dies In Prison
Fred Neulander, the Cherry Hill rabbi who was convicted in a murder-for-hire plot to kill his wife, has died in New Jersey State Prison, the DOC website says. Neulander, 82, was observed unresponsive by correctional officers inside a prison infirmary unit on Wednesday, April 17, according to NBCPhiladelphia.com and The Philadelphia Inquirer. Prison officials have not released a cause of death, however, he was listed as "deceased" on the state's Department of Corrections website. Neulander — the founding rabbi of Congregation M’kor Shalom of Cherry Hill, a Reform Jewish synagogue — had been…
Police & Fire
Man Who Admitted To Selling Cocaine In Union, Ocean Counties Sentenced: Prosecutors
A Kenilworth man will spend several years in prison after admitting to selling cocaine throughout Ocean and Union counties, authorities said. Pedro Reyes-Sevilla, 32, was sentenced on Friday, Apr. 19 to 10 years in prison, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer announced in a news release. He pleaded guilty on Friday, Feb. 16 to possession of five ounces or more of cocaine with intent to distribute. Agents with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, Lakewood police officers, and investigators from Union and Ocean counties conducted a two-week-long investigation in January…
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