Overcast 51°
Tag:

Sparta, NJ

Business
Ocean State Job Lot Will Bring Bargains To New Store In Holmdel Ocean State Job Lot Will Bring Bargains To New Store In Holmdel
Ocean State Job Lot Will Bring Bargains To New Store In Holmdel A Rhode Island-based chain of discount stores is expanding in the Garden State. Ocean State Job Lot will open a new location in the Kohl's Plaza on Route 35 in Holmdel. The company announced the newest store in a news release on Thursday, Mar. 28. The store will be in the former Stein Mart location and offer more than 37,000 square feet of shopping space. It was expected to open in the late summer or early fall of 2024, and online job applications will begin in late spring. The location is about 15 minutes from the former Ocean State Job Lot store in Shrewsbury that closed in 2019. "We ar…

SHARE

by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
$2M NJ Scammer Who Claimed Dead People As Biz Partners Gets 3 Years, No Parole $2M NJ Scammer Who Claimed Dead People As Biz Partners Gets 3 Years, No Parole
$2M NJ Scammer Who Claimed Dead People As Biz Partners Gets 3 Years, No Parole UPDATE: A scammer from Sussex County who fraudulently collected more than $2 million in federal funds by identifying people who'd been dead for more than a decade as business partners must spend the next three years in federal prison. John Jhong, 54, of Sparta, actually submitted bogus applications for more than $15 million in federal pandemic aid earmarked to help struggling companies during COVID-19, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. Jhong "turned these vital relief programs into his personal ATM," spending the more than $2 million he illegally collected on personal expenses, the U.…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Politics
18-Year-Old Wins Seat On NJ Town's School Board 18-Year-Old Wins Seat On NJ Town's School Board
18-Year-Old Wins Seat On NJ Town's School Board Lifelong Sparta resident Chad Wood has been elected to the town’s Board of Education just five months after graduating from high school. The 18-year-old is one of the state’s youngest to hold a BOE position. Wood ran alongside Jennifer "Lonsky" Grana and Kaitlin Gagnon. The trio incumbents Christina "Longo" Keiling and LeeAnne M. Pitzer. Wood might be young, but he comes with plenty of experience, having served as Student Council President for three years at Sparta High School, and was elected Executive President his senior year. Wood was also elected as the BOE’s Student Representative …

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police
North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police A North Jersey fire chief was arrested for masturbating in a vehicle parked in a ShopRite parking lot, authorities said. Budd Lake Fire Chief Joe Compano was arrested and charged with lewdness following the Tuesday, Sept. 19 incident in the parking lot of the Sparta ShopRite store on North Village Boulevard, Sparta police Detective Lt. Tom Snyder said. It began around 11:50 p.m., when a woman loading groceries into her car called police to say that the man in a maroon Ford Explorer next to her was masturbating with his penis exposed, Snyder said. He masturbated more aggressively and tried h…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
DRUG FRAUD: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine DRUG FRAUD: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine
Drug Fraud: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine An elaborate drug fraud ring operating in more than half the counties in New Jersey stole doctors’ prescription pads as part of a scheme to stock up on opioid-boosted cough syrup, authorities charged. Medical offices in various parts of the state – including Wayne, Morristown and Bridgewater – were broken into by Divinete Jeffries, 30, of East Orange, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. Jefferies snatched prescription pads that were then forged and given to accomplices who submitted them to various pharmacies using stolen IDs and bogus driver’s licenses, according to an indictment return…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Schools
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28 These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28 The first winter storm of the season is causing a change in plans for New Jersey schools on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Some districts have delayed openings while others are closed completely. Here's a list of which school are closed or delayed for Tuesday, Feb. 28. Check your school/district's website for details. Bedminster: 10: 50 a.m. start Bellville: Delayed Bergen County Tech: Closed Bergenfield: 2-hour delay Bernards: 2-hour delay Bloomfield: Delay Bloomingdale: Closed Bogota: Delayed Butler: Closed Cliffside Park: 10 a.m. start Clifton: Delayed Closter: Delayed Cresskill: Delayed Demarest: …

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
News
Earthquake? South Jersey Residents Shaken By Loud Rumbling Earthquake? South Jersey Residents Shaken By Loud Rumbling
Earthquake? South Jersey Residents Shaken By Loud Rumbling Residents from Cape May to Gloucester and Ocean counties reported a rumbling sound similar to an earthquake on Friday, Jan. 13. Within the first hour, hundreds of people reported the phenomenon on volcanodiscovery.com. The U.S. Geological Survey reported no signs of seismic activity in New Jersey or neighboring states on Friday afternoon. The internet was abuzz with reaction to what felt like an earthquake.Facebook/ Cape May Live On Cape May Live's Facebook page, Jane Hickman wrote: "At a few minutes after 2 p.m. today, my house shook and I felt and heard rumblings from the direction o…

SHARE

by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Un-Flipping-Believable: Pickup Truck Towing Excavator Flips, Plows Into NJ Tire Shop (PHOTOS) Un-Flipping-Believable: Pickup Truck Towing Excavator Flips, Plows Into NJ Tire Shop (PHOTOS)
Un-Flipping-Believable: Pickup Truck Towing Excavator Flips, Plows Into NJ Tire Shop (Photos) You'd have to see it to believe it: police say brake failure was to blame after a pickup truck towing an excavator flipped and crashed into a North Jersey tire shop. Luciano Viera Dos Santos, 28, was driving a black pickup truck towing an excavator on a flatbed on Glen Road toward Main Street in Sparta when its brakes failed around 9 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 23, Sparta Police said. Santos, of North Arlington, crossed Main Street and struck two parked vehicles before the flatbed flipped and crashed into Mavis Tire, causing the excavator to flip in the parking lot, authorities said. No one was…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
News
Men Drop Sex Assault Suits Against Ex-NJ Judge Turned Fox Analyst Men Drop Sex Assault Suits Against Ex-NJ Judge Turned Fox Analyst
Men Drop Sex Assault Suits Against Ex-NJ Judge Turned Fox Analyst Two men have dropped their lawsuits accusing disgraced former Bergen County judge turned Fox News analyst Andrew Napolitano of sexually assaulting them. Napolitano, who was fired from Fox last August amid accusations of sexually harassing employees, had already made headlines this week for selling his condo at Trump International Hotel & Tower on Central Park West. Then came reports, first published in the New Jersey Law Journal, that Charles Corbishley and James Kruzelnick had withdrawn their suits accusing Napolitano of sexual abuse three decades apart. Napolitano also dropped a lib…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Bear Kills Dog, Injures Woman In NJ Attack Bear Kills Dog, Injures Woman In NJ Attack
Bear Kills Dog, Injures Woman In NJ Attack A woman was hospitalized and her dog was killed after being attacked by a bear outside a North Jersey home Monday evening, police said. Officers responding to the attack on Echo Drive in Sparta found an 81-year-old woman with head and leg injuries around 7 p.m., Sparta Police Lt. John Lamon told DailyVoice.com. The woman stated that she had been bitten and scratched by a bear that had been attacking her dog. The woman had placed her garbage at the curb for disposal and later saw two bears that had torn open the bags and were eating the trash, Lamon said. The woman’s dogs, who were being l…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Elderly Man Drowns On Labor Day In Sparta's Lake Mohawk Elderly Man Drowns On Labor Day In Sparta's Lake Mohawk
Elderly Man Drowns On Labor Day In Sparta's Lake Mohawk The body of an 80-year-old Sussex County man was pulled from Lake Mohawk after an accidental drowning on Labor Day afternoon, police confirmed. Lawrence Botts, of Sparta, was attempting to use an inner tube to go around the side of his dock to get onto land from Lake Mohawk when the tube started to drift away from the boat into the water shortly after 12 p.m., Sparta Police Lt. John Lamon told Daily Voice. Botts then lost his grip and slipped underwater, Lamon said. Botts’ body was recovered and brought to shore by Lake Mohawk lifeguards a short time later. Rescue and dive teams were call…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
News
FBI Arrests NJ Mom For Producing, Sharing Child Porn FBI Arrests NJ Mom For Producing, Sharing Child Porn
FBI Arrests NJ Mom For Producing, Sharing Child Porn A Sussex County mom recorded and shared photos and video of a child being sexually abused, federal authorities charged A U.S. District Court magistrate judge in Newark ordered that Dominique Saczawa, 31, of Sparta remain in federal custody Tuesday afternoon via video conference in Newark, they said. Saczawa, who records show has a drug-related criminal history dating back 10 years, used an app to share files “depicting the sexual assault of a child,” Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. She also solicited others to do the same, Honig said. Saczawa, who has a young son, describ…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Obituaries
21-Year-Old NJ Healthcare Worker Dies Of COVID-19 21-Year-Old NJ Healthcare Worker Dies Of COVID-19
21-Year-Old NJ Healthcare Worker Dies Of Covid-19 Sussex County high school graduate and local healthcare worker Abel Sanchez-Casas died from COVID-19 complications at Newton Medical Center on June 18. He was 21. Born in Veracruz, Mexico, Sanchez-Casas grew up in Newton and graduated from Newton High School in 2017, his obituary says. Sanchez-Casas worked in healthcare at Broad Step Willow Glen in Sparta. He was known as a loving son, brother and friend, his memorial says. Sanchez-Casas loved music, basketball and animals and had an extensive collection of sneakers. Sanchez-Casas is survived by his parents, Abel Sanchez and Francisca Cas…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
News
Feds: Sussex Scammer Used Dead People’s Names To Collect $1.9M In COVID Relief Feds: Sussex Scammer Used Dead People’s Names To Collect $1.9M In COVID Relief
Feds: Sussex Scammer Used Dead People’s Names To Collect $1.9M In COVID Relief A Sussex County scammer identified people who’d been dead for years as business partners to help collect $1.9 million from the federal fund established to help struggling companies during COVID-19, authorities charged. John Jhong, 51, of Sparta, also submitted phony IRS documents with bogus Paycheck Protection Program applications to the lenders on behalf of 10 purported businesses, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. Jhong converted a portion of the money intended for distressed businesses into a cashier’s check “that was used to fund a business account,” Honig said. Congress a ye…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
No Charges For Jersey Shore Man Who Posted Facebook Threats Against Sparta Schools No Charges For Jersey Shore Man Who Posted Facebook Threats Against Sparta Schools
No Charges For Jersey Shore Man Who Posted Facebook Threats Against Sparta Schools A Jersey Shore man accused of posting threats toward Sparta school officials on social media will not face criminal charges, authorities said. The Wall Township man shared a message Friday calling for people to "knock down the doors of the BOE members and union leaders" if Sparta schools aren’t fully reopened soon, DailyRecord reports citing Police Lt. John Lamon. A follow-up investigation of the alleged threats determined that the man was “just venting,” the report says. "The detective bureau followed up and made contact with him," Lamon told the outlet. "The guy said 'I'm not looking to …

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Weather
How Much Snow Did Your Town Get? Here's The Breakdown Across NJ, PA How Much Snow Did Your Town Get? Here's The Breakdown Across NJ, PA
How Much Snow Did Your Town Get? Here's The Breakdown Across NJ, PA A major winter storm blasted the Northeast, dropping two feet or more on some areas. Here are the New Jersey and Pennsylvania towns with the highest and lowest snow totals, according to the National Weather Service. Don't see your area? Scroll down to search for your area. Springtown, PA (Bucks): 31.2 inches Sparta, NJ (Sussex): 28.3 Bloomingdale, NJ (Passaic): 26.2 Byram, NJ (Sussex): 26 Forks, PA (Northampton): 24 Bethlehem, PA (Northampton): 22 Bridgewater, NJ (Somerset): 22 Westwood, NJ (Bergen): 20 Ridgewood, NJ (Bergen): 19.4 North Caldwell, NJ (Essex): 17.3 Newark, NJ (Essex): 16.2…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
News
6 Former Sussex County Restaurant Workers Allege Sex Abuse By Owner In Scathing $15M Lawsuit 6 Former Sussex County Restaurant Workers Allege Sex Abuse By Owner In Scathing $15M Lawsuit
6 Former Sussex County Restaurant Workers Allege Sex Abuse By Owner In Scathing $15M Lawsuit A lawsuit seeking $15 million alleges the owner of an upscale Sussex County restaurant sexually harassed and abused six of his former employees. Filed Monday in Sussex County Superior Court, the suit calls Sparta's Mohawk House owner Stephen Scro a "sexual predator," and alleges his employees were subjected to countless acts of sex abuse and illegal discrimination for years. Scro is accused of creating a culture of intimidation and threatened his employees that in Sparta he had close connections with many powerful people, including the Sparta police department, judges and loc…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
NJ Customer, 73, Tangles With Police After Refusing To Wear Mask In Store NJ Customer, 73, Tangles With Police After Refusing To Wear Mask In Store
NJ Customer, 73, Tangles With Police After Refusing To Wear Mask In Store A 73-year-old Sparta man who had a previous history of disorderly conduct coughed on a supermarket employee, saying he had the coronavirus, and then spit on and tried to bite police after he was caught shopping without a face mask, authorities said. An employee asked Vadim Sakiewicz to leave a local Stop & Shop after he walked in not wearing a mask, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said. The Polish immigrant “became combative,” then coughed on a second employee who came to help, saying he had COVID-19, Grewal said. He then resisted arrest, the attorney general said. Police char…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
Police Officers Help Sussex County Mom Deliver Baby At Home Police Officers Help Sussex County Mom Deliver Baby At Home
Police Officers Help Sussex County Mom Deliver Baby At Home A new mom from Sparta is sharing the intense experience of delivering her baby in her own home -- but not without the help of three police officers. Lindsey Schlott and her husband, Brad Scheller, were concerned that COVID-19 precautions would prevent them from being together during the birth of their child. “I was pretty panicked about the idea of my husband not being there," Schlott told Daily Voice. "When I saw that there was a possibility that my husband wasn’t gonna be there, I thought, ‘I don’t want to do this by myself.’” On the evening of March 24, the couple talked with their dou…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Sparta Man Gets 5 Years For Role In Morris, Sussex, Bergen Coke/Pot Ring Sparta Man Gets 5 Years For Role In Morris, Sussex, Bergen Coke/Pot Ring
Sparta Man Gets 5 Years For Role In Morris, Sussex, Bergen Coke/Pot Ring A Sparta man must spend the next two years in state prison before he’ll be eligible for parole for his role in a drug distribution ring. A judge in Morristown on Friday sentenced Samuel J. Rozynski to five years, with the two-year parole ineligibility requirement, for his March 2 guilty plea to having cocaine and pot for sale, money laundering and conspiracy. Rozynski also forfeited what authorities said was $329,000 drug proceeds seized from him during simultaneous raids in Sparta, Cliffside Park and Parsippany this past Jan. 29. SEE: Pair Busted With Coke, Pot, Guns In Morris, Sussex, Be…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco