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Sgt. Brian Metzler

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Parked Cars Damaged In DWI Crashes, Fair Lawn Police Say Parked Cars Damaged In DWI Crashes, Fair Lawn Police Say
Parked Cars Damaged In DWI Crashes, Fair Lawn Police Say It was fortunate that parked cars -- and not people -- were struck in separate DWI crashes a week and a half apart in Fair Lawn, responders said. Kelbin Cardenes of Paterson was arrested after refusing a roadside sobriety test following a single-car crash on Morlot Avenue near Van Saun Place around 7:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve 2022, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Cardenes was released to a responsible adult after being charged with reckless driving, failure to remain in a single lane, DWI and refusing to submit to breath testing, the sergeant said. Miguel Alvarez of Elmwood Park was arrested after…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Fair Lawn PD: NY State Driver Caught With Crack, Smack Claims She'd Been 'Set Up' Fair Lawn PD: NY State Driver Caught With Crack, Smack Claims She'd Been 'Set Up'
Fair Lawn PD: NY State Driver Caught With Crack, Smack Claims She'd Been 'Set Up' A New York State driver told Fair Lawn police that someone else had planted the heroin and crack they found in her car in order to get her in trouble, authorities said. Johnni-Rose Szambel , 24, of Warwick, was trying to hide the drugs when she was stopped by Detectives Geovanny Buitron and Justin DiGuglielmo on Lincoln Avenue at Harristown Road, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. She then told them that someone was "trying to set her up” by tossing both into her car, the sergeant said. Szamble was charged with drug and paraphernalia possession, driving without a license, careless driving and not we…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Passenger Among Trio Passed Out In Stopped Vehicle Had Loaded Gun On His Lap: Fair Lawn PD Passenger Among Trio Passed Out In Stopped Vehicle Had Loaded Gun On His Lap: Fair Lawn PD
Passenger Among Trio Passed Out In Stopped Vehicle Had Loaded Gun On His Lap: Fair Lawn PD One of three men who were found nodded out in a car stopped in the middle of a Fair Lawn street had a loaded handgun on his lap, authorities said. Officers responding to the overnight call on Broadway at Fair Lawn Parkway arrested William Barba, 31, of Newark, along with the driver, Richard Scott, 30, of Ridgefield Park, and passenger Devin McConnell, 31, of Clifton, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Scott was released to a responsible adult after being charged with DWI, refusing to submit to a breath test and obstruction following the 3:30 a.m. incident on March 6, Metzler said. McConnell was rele…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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UPDATE: Fair Lawn Boy Found Nearly 600 Miles From Home UPDATE: Fair Lawn Boy Found Nearly 600 Miles From Home
Update: Fair Lawn Boy Found Nearly 600 Miles From Home A missing 16-year-old Fair Lawn boy was found safe and sound on Friday -- in Ohio, authorities confirmed. The news came a short time after a 16-year-old Glen Rock boy who also was reported missing on Thursday was found in Mahwah. Haadi Abdul-Ghaffar left his Fair Lawn home shortly before 8 a.m. Thursday, police said. Police suspected he might have been headed either to New York's Penn Station of Pennsylvania. He was reported found late Friday morning, Fair Lawn Police Sgt. Brian Metzler said. The news came after Glen Rock police reported that a 16-year-old boy from their town was found. …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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'Tragic Accident': Fair Lawn Boy, 9, Struck, Critically Injured 'Tragic Accident': Fair Lawn Boy, 9, Struck, Critically Injured
'Tragic Accident': Fair Lawn Boy, 9, Struck, Critically Injured A 9-year-old Fair Lawn boy was critically injured Wednesday in what responders all said was a "tragic accident." The third-grader apparently ran into 17th Street near Morlot Avenue when he was struck by a 2014 Honda CR-V shortly before 4 p.m., police Sgt. Brian Metzler said. He was taken to St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center in Paterson with a severe head injury, plus several broken bones, Metzler said. The driver, a 58-year-old woman also from Fair Lawn, remained at the scene, the sergeant said. No charges will be filed, he said. Fair Lawn police and Volunteer Ambulance Corps members w…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Head-On DWI Crash Off Route 208: One Driver Hospitalized, Other Arrested, Fair Lawn Police Say Head-On DWI Crash Off Route 208: One Driver Hospitalized, Other Arrested, Fair Lawn Police Say
Head-On DWI Crash Off Route 208: One Driver Hospitalized, Other Arrested, Fair Lawn Police Say Police said a driver was under the influence when his car slammed head-on into another Friday morning just off Route 208 in Fair Lawn, authorities said. Witnesses told police that Vadym Yukhno, 58, of Fair Lawn passed several other cars on Maple Avenue coming off the highway ramp toward Glen Rock when his Prius struck a Chevy Malibu in the oncoming lane just shortly after 9 a.m. The driver of the Malibu, a 43-year-old New Haven, CT woman, was taken to The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood with chest and wrist injuries, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Police arrested Yukhno after he failed a roadside …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Fair Lawn PD Says String Wasn’t A Noose, 'Not A Deliberate Act' Fair Lawn PD Says String Wasn’t A Noose, 'Not A Deliberate Act'
Fair Lawn PD Says String Wasn’t A Noose, 'Not A Deliberate Act' UPDATE: Following a lengthy investigation, Fair Lawn police said Tuesday that a length of string found tied to a tree that took a disturbing shape this past weekend wasn't a noose but, rather, was an item used by contractors. "The rope in question was closer in size to twine (thinner than a shoe lace) that is regularly used by utility companies to either tie cables together or to pull new cables from pole to pole," Sgt. Brian Metzler said. "It appears that the twine, found tied to the tree, had been attached to twine found in the overhead cables," Metzler said. "It appeared that the porti…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It
Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It A length of string with a loop found tied to a tree in Fair Lawn apparently was used by a utility company and doesn't appear to be a noose, as some had suspected, police said. "At this point, we do not believe this is a hate crime but a rope that was put up by a utility company (Verizon, Optimum, etc.) to help with utility wires that had been down in the area," Sgt. Brian Metzler said Sunday afternoon.  "We have calls in with the utility companies and are awaiting responses," Metzler said. "This will be referred to our detective bureau either way." Resident Kelli McCloud of the borough's …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It
Police Say Twine Tied To Tree In Fair Lawn Doesn't Appear Suspicious, Mayor Not Buying It A length of string with a loop found tied to a tree in Fair Lawn apparently was used by a utility company and doesn't appear to be a noose, as some had suspected, police said. "At this point, we do not believe this is a hate crime but a rope that was put up by a utility company (Verizon, Optimum, etc.) to help with utility wires that had been down in the area," Sgt. Brian Metzler said Sunday afternoon.  "We have calls in with the utility companies and are awaiting responses," Metzler said. "This will be referred to our detective bureau either way." Resident Kelli McCloud of the borough's …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Online Fair Lawn Xbox Seller Dragged In Parking Lot, Left Holding Tissue Paper Instead Of Cash Online Fair Lawn Xbox Seller Dragged In Parking Lot, Left Holding Tissue Paper Instead Of Cash
Online Fair Lawn Xbox Seller Dragged In Parking Lot, Left Holding Tissue Paper Instead Of Cash A Fair Lawn man who tried to sell an Xbox online was dragged by two robbers who snatched the system and left him with an envelope full of tissue paper Tuesday night, authorities said. The 31-year-old victim told police he arranged on Facebook Marketplace to meet a buyer for the $530 system in the parking lot of the CVS on Fair Lawn Avenue shortly after 8 p.m. The purported buyer took the Xbox and walked with the victim back to the vehicle he arrived in – a newer-model Navy blue BMW – that had a driver, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Once the victim had the envelope, the driver backed away with t…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Fair Lawn PD: Man Seized For Violating Order Of Protection Fights With, Spits On Officers Fair Lawn PD: Man Seized For Violating Order Of Protection Fights With, Spits On Officers
Fair Lawn PD: Man Seized For Violating Order Of Protection Fights With, Spits On Officers A Fair Lawn man led borough police on a brief foot chase, then spit on and fought with officers after violating an order of protection, authorities said. Brandon Hernandez, 25, ran from officers who responded to a call to a 1st Street residence Wednesday afternoon, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. When they finally grabbed him, Hernandez fought with and spit on the officers before being subdued, Metzler said. Members of the Fair Lawn Volunteer Ambulance Corps took him under police guard to Bergen New Bridge Medical Center in Paramus for an evaluation. He was later transferred to the Bergen County …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Woman, 19, Three Juveniles Charged In Video Assault On Boy With Autism In Fair Lawn Park Woman, 19, Three Juveniles Charged In Video Assault On Boy With Autism In Fair Lawn Park
Woman, 19, Three Juveniles Charged In Video Assault On Boy With Autism In Fair Lawn Park UPDATE: Fair Lawn police charged a 19-year-old former borough employee and three juveniles with last week's video-recorded assault on a 14-year-old special needs boy in a local park. Alis Fidrya was charged with invasion of privacy, cyber-harassment and harassment in connection with the incident at Berdan Grove Park in which a 13-year-old boy held the victim's shoulders while a 10-year-old boy pulled down his pants. While this was happening, Fidrya and a 16-year-old girl recording the incident and "posted it on Snapchat and TikTok for others to see," Sgt. Brian Metzler said Monday. Police …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
PD: Worker Injured After Falling Through Roof Of Fair Lawn Auto Dealership Was On Cleanup Job PD: Worker Injured After Falling Through Roof Of Fair Lawn Auto Dealership Was On Cleanup Job
PD: Worker Injured After Falling Through Roof Of Fair Lawn Auto Dealership Was On Cleanup Job UPDATE: A member of a crew cleaning up trash on the roof of a Fair Lawn auto dealership Sunday morning tripped and fell 25 feet through a skylight to the showroom below, authorities said. The worker -- a New York man working for Eagle Construction of Haledon -- sustained a head injury after the noontime mishap at Glen Toyota, police Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Police forced their way into the Maple Avenue dealership, which is closed on Sundays, to get to him, Metzler said. The Fair Lawn Volunteer Ambulance Corps took him to St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, the sergeant said.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Fair Lawn PD: Hackensack Man Looking Into Cars Outside Bank Had Heroin, Crack, Airsoft Gun Fair Lawn PD: Hackensack Man Looking Into Cars Outside Bank Had Heroin, Crack, Airsoft Gun
Fair Lawn PD: Hackensack Man Looking Into Cars Outside Bank Had Heroin, Crack, Airsoft Gun Fair Lawn police investigating a report of a man looking into car windows found a Hackensack man carrying heroin, crack and an airsoft gun, authorities said. Officers Anthony Burgos and Peter Federico found 43-year-old David Merritt in the parking lot of the Chase Bank on River Road just after 3 p.m. Thursday, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. They found the drugs and weapon inside a backpack he was carrying, Metzler said. Merritt, it turned out, was wanted on warrants out of Clifton, Paterson, Ledgewood. Records show other prior arrests just this year in Elmwood Park, Paramus, Little Ferry, Roche…

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by Jerry DeMarco