Light Drizzle Fog/Mist 47°
Police & Fire
GOTCHA! Federal, State Team Seize Local Man, 24, In Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism GOTCHA! Federal, State Team Seize Local Man, 24, In Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism
Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism Islamophobia Jacob Beacher 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…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Pennsylvania BMW Driver, 30, Struck, Killed After Crash Along NJ Turnpike Pennsylvania BMW Driver, 30, Struck, Killed After Crash Along NJ Turnpike
Pennsylvania BMW Driver, 30, Struck, Killed After Crash Along NJ Turnpike 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…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Authorities Identify 3 Killed In Fiery Route 1 Crash In South Brunswick Authorities Identify 3 Killed In Fiery Route 1 Crash In South Brunswick
Charisse Nelson-Bailey Daniel Vida Maria Passalaris 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…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Toms River Man Who Had 1K+ Child Porn Pictures Facing More Charges: Prosecutors Toms River Man Who Had 1K+ Child Porn Pictures Facing More Charges: Prosecutors
Toms River Man Who Had 1K+ Child Porn Pictures Facing More Charges: Prosecutors A Toms River man is facing more charges after investigators claimed he used several apps to distribute child pornography, authorities said. Edward Lynch, 52, was charged on Sunday, Apr. 21 with distribution of child pornography and an additional count of possession of child pornography, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a news release. Lynch was previously charged with possession of child pornography about eight months earlier. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received tips about someone downloading pictures of child pornography on the in…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Plainfield School Employee Pocketed $13K Meant For Program: Complaint Plainfield School Employee Pocketed $13K Meant For Program: Complaint
Plainfield School Employee Pocketed $13K Meant For Program: Complaint An employee with the Plainfield School District and a board of education trustee in Montgomery was arrested last month and charged with stealing money meant for a school program, authorities said. Between March 2021 and May 2023, Zelda Spence-Wallace, 54, pocketed $13,000 meant for the Plainfield Board of Education's 21st Century Community Learning Center Program and used it for her own personal gain, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Daily Voice. Spence-Wallace was charged with theft by deception and theft of moveable property. The mother of five served as project director for…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Family Of Eight Displaced After Central Jersey House Fire Family Of Eight Displaced After Central Jersey House 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…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Man Drunkenly Crashed Pickup Into Tree, Injuring Two People In Toms River: Prosecutors Man Drunkenly Crashed Pickup Into Tree, Injuring Two People In Toms River: Prosecutors
Man Drunkenly Crashed Pickup Into Tree, Injuring Two People In Toms River: Prosecutors An Ocean County man was accused of driving drunk in a crash that injured two people, authorities said. Erick Perez-Ramirez, 40, of Jackson Township, was arrested after the crash on Saturday, Apr. 20, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in a news release. Perez-Ramirez was charged with two counts of assault by auto. Toms River police responded to the crash near the intersection of Bay Avenue and Ethan Court at around 4:45 a.m. Perez-Ramirez drove a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado with three passengers from Toms River. Investigators said Perez-Ramirez failed to m…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Man Arrested For Cutting Another's Fingers Off In Perth Amboy: Police Man Arrested For Cutting Another's Fingers Off In Perth Amboy: Police
Ziyare Palmer, of Perth Amboy, Charged With Attempted Murder A 24-year-old man has been arrested for slashing a man and cutting off some of his fingers during an attack under the Victory Bridge in Perth Amboy, authorities said. Ziyare Palmer, of Perth Amboy, was charged with attempted murder, weapons offenses and motor vehicle theft in what Perth Amboy police described as a domestic violence assault. Palmer attacked a 39-year-old Woodbridge man at about 11:15 p.m. on April 14, police said. The victim was yelling for help when police arrived. He was brought to an area hospital. “This incident was a targeted act of domestic violence, and there is no …

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Teenage Driver Struck By School Bus After Running Red Light: Montgomery Police Teenage Driver Struck By School Bus After Running Red Light: Montgomery Police
Teenage Driver Struck By School Bus After Running Red Light: Montgomery Police A 19-year-old Skillman resident ignored a red light and was hit by a school bus in Montgomery on the afternoon of Friday, April 19, authorities said. At 3 p.m., a white Acura was traveling west on Skillman Road when it failed it to stop for the red traffic signal at the intersection of Route 601, Montgomery police said. The Acura entered the intersection and was struck by a small school bus traveling south on Route 601, police said. After striking the Acura, the school bus impacted the traffic signal on the southwest corner of the intersection, police said. First responders evaluated the si…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Woman 'Deceased For 17 Minutes' Revived, In ICU After Ocean County Crash: Campaign Woman 'Deceased For 17 Minutes' Revived, In ICU After Ocean County Crash: Campaign
Woman 'Deceased For 17 Minutes' Revived, In ICU After Ocean County Crash: Campaign UPDATE (Tuesday, Apr. 22 at 9:40 a.m.): Catalina Reinoso's family has confirmed she has died and her organs were donated to potentially save nine people's lives. You can click here to read the updated story. --- A woman was revived after suffering brain trauma in an Ocean County crash and was fighting for her life in a hospital, according to a fundraising campaign. Catalina Reinoso was airlifted to a trauma center hospital after the crash on Lacey Road in Manchester Township at around 2 a.m. on Sunday, Apr. 14, a GoFundMe page said. Reinoso's Facebook profile said she is from Brick T…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Arsonist, 44, Charged In South Jersey Church Fire: Police Arsonist, 44, Charged In South Jersey Church Fire: Police
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.

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
HORRIFIC: NJ Retiree, 73, Collected Sexual Images Of Children As Young As 4: Sheriff HORRIFIC: NJ Retiree, 73, Collected Sexual Images Of Children As Young As 4: Sheriff
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…

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by Jerry DeMarco