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Tag: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Ex-Con Kidnapper Gets 43 Years, No Parole, For Rape, Arson, Assault Rampage Through NJ, NY, PA
UPDATE: An ex-con who kidnapped and raped his ex-girlfriend in Pennsylvania, then torched a used car dealership in Paterson and rammed a stolen SUV into police cars at both ends of the George Washington Bridge was sentenced to 43 years in federal prison.
Luis Figueroa, 42, first took a plea deal from the government that called for him to serve 26 years in a federal penitentiary.
Then he abruptly withdrew his plea, took his chances with a trial – and lost.
Federal jurors in Newark convicted Figueroa in May 2022 of kidnapping, criminal sexual abuse, illegal gun possession and assaulting…
Two Men, Boy Seized On Attempted Murder Charges Following Passaic Drive-By
UPDATE: Two men and a teenage boy were seized by detectives on attempted murder charges for firing from a car into a crowd of people on a Passaic street last month, authorities said.
Kenneth Garcia, 21, and ex-con Luis Ledesma, 22, both of Passaic, and the 16-year-old boy were taken into custody by city detectives earlier this week in connection with the March 26 drive-by shooting on Monroe Street near Myrtle Avenue, they said.
No one was injured in the shooting, responders said at the time.
Along with attempted murder, Garcia and Ledesma were charged with aggravated assault, employing a j…
Plot Twist: Attendant Helped Plan Gas Station Robbery Off Garden State Parkway, Feds Charge
Federal authorities charged a gas station attendant with planning the robbery of a newly-opened QuickChek where he worked just off the Garden State Parkway.
An indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Newark accuses Tyrone Crutchfield-Davis, 27, of Linden of plotting the Dec. 15, 2019 holdup on North Avenue at Exit 137 in Cranford with three associates.
Authorities had previously identified the other three men -- Wiggins Cadet, 24, and Khalil Brown, 23, of Roselle, and Zyquan McCray, 23, of Linden.
It turns out Crutchfield-Davis -- a former standout high school quarterback with a cri…
Guns Smuggled From Georgia By Central Jersey Felon: AG
A man from Central Jersey has been arrested for illegally smuggling guns into New Jersey from Georgia, authorities said.
Barrett R. Griffin, III, 33, of North Brunswick, was indicted on multiple weapons charges, according to Acting Attorney General Matthew J. Plotkin. The guns were allegedly intended to be sold unlawfully, he said.
The indictment, handed up by a State Grand Jury on Friday, May 6, alleges that between Feb. 5, and Feb. 7, Griffin illegally transported handguns from Georgia to New Jersey, for unlawful sale.
“As gun violence continues to disrupt the peace of communities throug…
Feds: 'Community Guns' Smuggled Into NJ Seized, Local Man, Georgia Woman Charged
A trio of “community guns” were brought into New Jersey by a Garden State man and a Georgia woman, a grand jury has charged.
Most used in crimes in New Jersey are smuggled in from out of state, most often from the South, after being bought or stolen, authorities say.
These include “community guns,” which two or more criminals stash somewhere – in a mailbox or a garbage can, under a rock or on the tire of a car, for instance -- for instant access and quick disposal by them and others.
A grand jury indictment returned in Trenton charges Marquise Peterson, 28, of Trenton, and Quaneisha Frost-…
Inseparable Couple Killed In Hoboken Fire Was 'Loving To A Fault'
Authorities have identified the second victim killed in last month's Hoboken fire.
The bodies of Alexander von Schlinke, 61, and Rose Marie Vos, 60, were found in the warehouse at 38 Jackson St., that went up in flames Monday, Dec. 20, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said.
Together for more than 40 years, Von Schlinke and Vos were remembered by family members as being inseparable.
"They worked together & if you found one the other was never far off," Vos' sister wrote on a GoFundMe campaign. "They loved each other they were creative, caring and loving to a fault."
Th…
8 Kids, 4 Adults Dead In 'Devastating' Philadelphia Fire
Eight children and four adults were confirmed dead in a fire that swept through a Philadelphia rowhouse early Wednesday morning, city officials said.
Had the smoke alarms in the N. 23 Street building been working properly, though, things might have turned out differently, Mayor Jim Kenney's office said in a news release.
“This is, without a doubt, one of the most tragic days in our city’s history,” said Kenney, the son of a firefighter, at a news conference Wednesday. “Losing so many kids is just devastating.”
Fire companies arrived at 6:40 a.m. and found heavy fire coming …
NJ, PA Trio Trafficked Dozens Of 'Ghost Guns,' Indictment Charges
Two Philadelphia men and one from Camden trafficked no fewer than two dozen untraceable “ghost guns” from Pennsylvania into New Jersey, a grand jury indictment alleges.
Even more guns, as well as parts, large-capacity magazine and ammo, were seized during the investigation, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Andrew J. Bruck said Tuesday.
According to the indictment returned in Trenton, Eduardo T. Lazo Jr., 26, of Camden, organized the operation and sold the illegal guns in Camden.
Juan Enrique Fernandez, 29, and Ericknell Rivera-Mercado, 31, both of Philadelphia, are accused of bringing th…