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Prosecutor: Widow Of NJ ‘Animal Whisperer’ Continued Veterinary Practice Without License
The widow of a North Jersey veterinarian who’d been known as the “animal whisperer” was arrested for continuing to operate his clinic without a license, authorities announced Monday.
Alia Muslih, 39, of Montclair was charged with animal cruelty, among other counts, after Passaic County prosecutor’s detectives raided the Totowa Animal Hospital along with local police, the DEA, the state Division of Consumer Affairs and animal control officers from Paterson and Clifton.
Her late husband, Adel Hamdan, was renowned in his field, having previously operated the Maywood Veterinary Clinic for 17 ye…
Police: Thief From Elizabeth, 20, Steals Wayne Senior's Social Security Benefits
An Elizabeth man used more than $1,000 of an elderly Wayne resident’s money after stealing his Social Security benefits card, authorities charged.
Anthony Belizaca, 20, was arrested after township detectives traced the thefts back to a business where he used to work, Detective Capt. Daniel Daly said.
Belizaca drained what was left on the card – which is for obtaining and spending Social Security Benefits – to buy electronics and food, Daly said.
Police charged him with credit card theft, theft by deception and wrongful impersonation, the captain said.
Belizaca surrendered at headquarters …
Wayne Detectives Nab PSE&G Scammer, Believe More Victims Are Out There
Wayne police detectives tracked down and charged a Queens man for conning a resident out of $2,570 through a utility scam. Now they’re trying to find out whether he had any other local victims.
Welinton Cedano, 29, sent the township resident a bogus text that purported to be from PSE&G, Detective Capt. Dan Daly said.
Following prompts, the woman was connected with someone claiming to be a manager who convinced her that she owed the utility money, Daly said.
Before it was over, she’d made four separate payments to a Zelle account, he said.
Suspecting it was bogus, the woman later …
Hackensack Teacher From Oradell Charged With Pocketing $300,000 In Ponzi Scheme
A Hackensack schoolteacher from Oradell ran a Ponzi scheme that fleeced investors of $300,000 that she used for herself, authorities announced Monday.
Suzette Hart, 54, “solicited multiple investors for various high-yield, well-known investment opportunities knowing that the investments were fraudulent” over a five-year period, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said.
Hart, who most recently taught at Hackensack’s Fairmount School, then “disbursed money from one investor to other investors, which reinforced the deception that the investor’s money had been properly invested and was produc…
Authorities: Garfield PD Nabs Man Who Scammed Upstate NY Grandma Out Of Nearly $12,800
An elderly New York State woman was conned out of $7,000 in a grandparent scam -- and nearly lost $5,800 more before Garfield police grabbed a Paterson man as he collected the second payment, authorities said.
Jose A. Torres-Dejesus, 27, called the victim on Friday claiming to be her grandson, Detective Capt. Richard Uram said.
Torres-Dejesus told the woman he’d been involved in a DUI crash and needed money, Uram said.
He then gave her a phone number, saying it was his attorney, the captain said.
The woman called the number and a man who answered said she had overnight $7,000 in cash to a…
Authorities: On-The-Spot Paramus Police Officers Nab ID Thief Fleeing With Victim's $3,500
Paramus police nabbed an identity thief as she tried to flee a Route 17 bank with $3,500 that she'd just pulled from a victim’s account, authorities said.
Responding to a call, Officers Michael Boccher, Gregg Hooper and Officer David Polanco seized Chelsea D. Colson, 29, outside the Citibank branch Police Chief Kenneth Ehrenberg said Wednesday.
She was carrying a small amount of cocaine, Ehrenberg said.
The officers learned that Colson withdrew $3,500 from a Brooklyn resident’s account using stolen identification.
Colson, who's had recent addresses in New York and Florida, is awaiting t…
