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Tag: US Department of Homeland Security
Fairview Restaurant Owner In $90,000 Wire Transfer Scam Flees To Brazil, Returned To US
A Fairview restaurant owner who claimed to be sending wire transfers for customers to Brazil pocketed at least $90,000 before fleeing the country, authorities said.
Joanistel Ramos, 59, who owns Brasil and Brazil restaurant on Anderson Avenue, stiffed at least 15 local victims out of $40,000 in wire transfers that were never sent, Fairvew Police Capt. Michael Martic said.
"She basically printed out a bogus generic receipt and put the money in her pocket," the captain said.
Ramos, of Cliffside Park, also defrauded a money transfer company in Newark called Lyons Express out of an additional …
Biz Owners Take Pleas After NJ Feds Seize Record $14M Worth Of Cisco Networking Knockoffs
Three North Jersey business owners admitted importing and selling cheap knockoffs of Cisco Systems networking equipment after federal agents seized an unprecedented $14 million worth of the devices from their warehouse in Passaic County.
Musa Karaman, 35, of North Arlington, was the last of the trio to take a deal from the government, pleading guilty to trafficking counterfeit goods in U.S. District Court in Newark on Thursday, Aug. 24.
Accomplices Sadri Ozturan, 37, of Hawthorne, and Israfil "David" Demir, 38, of Secaucus both pleaded guilty to the same charges on Aug. 8, U.S. Attorney for…
Bergen Ex-Con Tried Boarding Newark Flight With AR-15, Taser, Fake US Marshal Creds, More: Feds
A convicted felon from Bergen County was seized while trying to bring two rifles, a handgun, a Taser, a switchblade and bogus U.S. Marshals credentials onto a flight from Newark to Fort Lauderdale, federal authorities said.
Seretse Clouden, 42, of Wallington had a .308-caliber DPMS Panther Arms rifle, a 5.56-caliber AR-15 rifle, a .40-caliber Glock 22 handgun and the phony creds -- which bore his name, photograph and a U.S. Marshal badge -- in his checked baggage, the FBI charged in a complaint.
His bags also contained a ballistic vest that said "Deputy Marshal," two magazines containing 15…
Feds Bust North Jersey Man On Child Porn Charges
A Morris County man was arrested by federal agents Monday on child porn trafficking charges, authorities said.
Igor Michael Terrero, 49, of Succasunna, shared more than 85 media files -- including "images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children" -- from Aug. 30, 2021, through April 20, 2022, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Jessica S. Allen allowed Terrero's release on a $100,000 unsecured bond with home detention and electronic monitoring during a first appearance via video conference, Sellinger said.
Terrero is charged with one count of distributing…
Feds: Ponzi Schemer Funded House, Car, More With $6.8M From Investors In NJ, Elsewhere
New Jersey residents were among more than two dozen victims who lost a combined $6.8 million to a North Carolina con man running a Ponzi scheme, federal authorities charged.
David Schamens, 64, of Greensboro, NC, promised annual return rates of 12% to 30% when he began soliciting investments in 2014 in Secaucus-based TradeStream Analytics LTD, as well as in other entities with names such as TD Trading LLC, TFG Trading LLC, and Tradedesk Financial Group Inc., U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.
He then launched Tradestream Algo Fund, an algorithm-based trading pool that he clai…
Feds: NJ Ex-Con Caught With 33 Guns, High-Capacity Mags, Silencer, Ammo Takes Plea
UPDATE: A South Jersey ex-con found with dozens of guns, high-capacity magazines and ammo admitted having others buy guns for him, federal authorities said.
Darick Nollett, 32, who lives in Cumberland County near the Delaware Bay, caught the attention of law enforcement when he bought a “fuel filter” – a device commonly used to silence firearms -- from China, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said.
As a convicted felon, Nollett was prohibited from having weaponry, Honig said.
So he got straw purchasers to buy guns for him, she said.
A court-approved search of his Heislerville home in …