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Police & Fire
Lightning Strike Ignites Paramus House Fire Lightning Strike Ignites Paramus House Fire
Lightning Strike Ignites Paramus House Fire A lightning strike ignited a fire in a Paramus home Friday morning. The blaze damaged the second floor of the two-story, wood-frame home on Bullard Avenue, off Forest Avenue, after it broke out at around 8:15 a.m. July 14. Firefighters had it doused in under a half hour. No injuries were reported. Paramus police and members of their Emergency Services Unit, along with Paramus Rescue Squad joined other borough firefighters at the scene, with colleagues from surrounding towns providing coverage. These included responders from Fair Lawn, Maywood, Oradell, River Edge, Rochelle Park and Washi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Paramus House Fire Doused Paramus House Fire Doused
Paramus House Fire Doused Firefighters doused a nighttime attic blaze in Paramus. No injuries were reported in the two-alarmer, which ignited in a two-story, wood-frame home on Terhune Avenue, just off Midland Avenue, around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, June 24. Firefighters had it knocked down in under a half hour and under control minutes later. Mutual aid responders included firefighters from Maywood, Rochelle Park, River Edge, Washington Township, Oradell and Fair Lawn.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Yet Another Memorial Day Weekend Fire Ravages Upper Saddle River Home UPDATE: Yet Another Memorial Day Weekend Fire Ravages Upper Saddle River Home
Update: Yet Another Memorial Day Weekend Fire Ravages Upper Saddle River Home Yet another Memorial Day weekend fire in North Jersey blew through the roof of an Upper Saddle River home. The blaze in the two-story, 4,200-square-foot Carlough Road house near the Rockland County border broke out around 8 p.m. May 27, bringing firefighters from both sides of the state line. They had the fire knocked down and under control in roughly 40 minutes -- but not before it severely damaged multiple floors at one end of the house. Flames blew through the roof of the Carlough Road house near the Rockland County border in Upper Saddle River.Ethan Hayes for DAILY VOICE No injurie…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Roof Collapses In Clifton House Fire Roof Collapses In Clifton House Fire
Roof Collapses In Clifton House Fire UPDATE: The roof of a Clifton home collapsed during a fire on Saturday that brought arson investigators. The two-alarm blaze -- three bells for coverage -- ignited shortly before noon May 27 and quickly spread through the home on dead-ended Lynn Drive. Firefighters went defensive once the roof began collapsing, then returned to an offensive attack soon after. No injuries were reported. The two-alarm blaze -- three bells for coverage -- ignited shortly before noon May 27 and quickly spread through the Lynn Drive home.Victor Scrivens for DAILY VOICE A preliminary cause wasn't given. A …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Raging Overnight Fire Destroys River Edge Home Raging Overnight Fire Destroys River Edge Home
Raging Overnight Fire Destroys River Edge Home Sections of a River Edge home collapsed during a vicious overnight fire. A dog was killed in the blaze on Eastbrook Drive, near Forest Avenue and Route 4, at 1:40 a.m. Saturday, May 27, according to neighbors. No injuries were otherwise reported. Borough firefighters headed back to the scene when the blaze briefly rekindled around 11:30 a.m. It apparently began in the attached garage and quickly spread to some vehicles and through one end of the two-story, 3,500-square-foot wood-frame house. Some water issues initially were reported. A preliminary cause wasn't given. The overnight f…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Burglar's Dozen: Repeat Offender Tied To 13 New Milford Vehicle Break-Ins Burglar's Dozen: Repeat Offender Tied To 13 New Milford Vehicle Break-Ins
Burglar's Dozen: Repeat Offender Tied To 13 New Milford Vehicle Break-Ins There's a reason they call it a crime of opportunity. More than a dozen vehicles that were left unlocked at the south end of New Milford had laptops, credit cards, IDs and other personal belongings stolen by a local repeat offender, authorities said. All of the 13 thefts occurred overnight on May 2, Police Capt. Kevin Van Saders said. Detectives identified Lashawn Ray, 26, conducted a warranted search of his home in town and arrested him on Thursday, May 11, after finding some of the stolen goods, the captain said. They charged Ray with nine counts of burglary and six counts of theft and …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Underage Teen Sexually Assaulted By Westchester Man, 27, Repeatedly In River Edge: Prosecutor Underage Teen Sexually Assaulted By Westchester Man, 27, Repeatedly In River Edge: Prosecutor
Underage Teen Sexually Assaulted By Westchester Man, 27, Repeatedly In River Edge: Prosecutor A tipster led authorities to a warehouse manager from Westchester who they said traveled to Bergen County for sex with an underage teen he met online. Eric Palese, 27, of Tarrytown sexually assaulted the under-16-year-old child multiple times in River Edge, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said on Thursday, April 6. Based on the charges, it was at least a half-dozen times during the second and third weeks of March. Authorities began investigating the 6-foot, 270-pound Palese after the tip came in on Monday, the prosecutor said. “The caller reported that the suspect contacted the chil…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Tractor-Trailer Driver, 78, Hospitalized After Rig Rams Route 4 Guardrail Tractor-Trailer Driver, 78, Hospitalized After Rig Rams Route 4 Guardrail
Tractor-Trailer Driver, 78, Hospitalized After Rig Rams Route 4 Guardrail UPDATE: A 78-year-old Paterson resident was hospitalized after his tractor-trailer slammed into and onto a guardrail at the River Edge exit on eastbound Route 4 overnight, authorities said. The rig hit the metal railing on the highway's eastbound side just off Main Street shortly after 1:30 a.m. Thursday, March 30, Police Chief Michael Walker said. The driver was initially tended to by borough police and firefighters from River Edge and Hackensack. He was then taken to Hackensack University Medical Center with injuries that the chief said weren't considered life-threatening. The tract…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner?
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? UPDATE: The prosecution of two Paterson-based school bus companies accused of risking children's safety by hiring criminals as drivers, operating unsafe buses and other violations has notched its first conviction. Will there be another? Henry Rhodes, 59, admitted in state Superior Court in Newark last week that he lied to school districts about the safety of buses and the credentials of drivers at both companies, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. The goal, authorities said, was to keep lucrative busing contracts in Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties no matter the …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Knife-Wielding Man Charged After Hours-Long SWAT Standoff At River Edge Garden Apartment Knife-Wielding Man Charged After Hours-Long SWAT Standoff At River Edge Garden Apartment
Knife-Wielding Man Charged After Hours-Long SWAT Standoff At River Edge Garden Apartment UPDATE: A man who was seized when a SWAT team stormed his mother's garden apartment in River Edge is facing a host of charges. A construction worker by trade, Christopher C. Gomez, 38, had been living in shelters in New York City before recently moving in with his mother at the Oxford Terrace Apartments, authorities said. He'd become violent, however, so she fled and called police at 7:43 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, River Edge Police Chief Michael Walker said. Responding officers “tried to contend with him,” but Gomez retreated into the kitchen of the garden apartment and began picking up knive…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At River Edge Garden Apartment Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At River Edge Garden Apartment
Tear Gas Ends Hours-Long SWAT Standoff With Knife-Wielding Man At River Edge Garden Apartment SWAT team members ended a standoff of more than five hours when they subdued a knife-wielding man who’d barricaded himself in his mother’s River Edge apartment. A construction worker by trade, the man had been living in shelters in New York City before recently moving in with his mother at the Oxford Terrace Apartments. He'd become violent, however, so she fled and called police at 7:43 a.m., River Edge Police Chief Michael Walker said. Responding officers “tried to contend with him,” but he retreated into the kitchen of the garden apartment and began picking up knives, the chief said. Th…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Caretakers Bound, Left Disabled Man For Dead On Bergen County Road: Reports Caretakers Bound, Left Disabled Man For Dead On Bergen County Road: Reports
Caretakers Bound, Left Disabled Man For Dead On Bergen County Road: Reports Two Bergen County caretakers face manslaughter charges after they allegedly tied up a disabled man, stuffed a sock in his mouth and dumped his body, NJ Advance Media reports. Michael Kestenbaum, 62, was found dead at about 7:20 p.m. on Dec. 8, 2022, along Ackerman Street near Route 4 West in River Edge, authorities said. Charged on Thursday, Jan. 19, were Tyrone Closs, 32, and Aniesa Samad, 24, Musella said in a press statement. In addition to aggravated manslaughter, the couple was charged with desecration of human remains, criminal restraint, elder abuse and obstruction, Musella said…

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by Jon Craig