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Sunday, apr 28
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North Plainfield, NJ
Police & Fire
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! Federal, State Team Seize Local Man, 24, In Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism
UPDATE: An elite law enforcement team captured a 24-year-old local man on Monday who authorities said broke in and trashed the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University in New Brunswick earlier this month. Jacob Beacher was due for an initial afternoon appearance on federal hate crime charges in U.S. District Court in Newark on April 22. Beacher broke into the CILRU shortly after 2:30 a.m. April 10 and did an estimated $40,000 worth of damage, state and federal authorities said. It was during the Eid-al-Fitr -- the Islamic holiday commemorating the end of sunrise-to-dusk fasting during…
Obituaries
Beloved Somerset County Dad Dies After 10-Year Battle With Kidney Disease
Support is on the rise for a Somerset County family mourning the loss of a devoted dad after a 10-year battle with kidney disease. David Betancourt died surrounded by his beloved family at RJW Somerset on Monday, Nov. 6, his obituary says. He was 69. Born and raised in Agua Caliente, Guatemala, David lived in Plainfield, Somerville, and California before settling in North Plainfield in 2007. He was a member of the army in Guatemala before arriving in the United States in the 1980s, his memorial says. Described as a “man of all trades,” David loved soccer, especially watching the World Cu…
Police & Fire
Star Of HBO's 'Telemarketers' Pat Pespas Found Safe After Missing For Month Across NJ, PA
Patrick J. Pespas, who starred in HBO's "Telemarketers," has been found safe. Pespas, 55, of Phillipsburg, has been found safe and was home with his wife, Sue, directors Sam Lipman-Stern and Adam Bhala Lough said on Pespas' Instagram account Friday, Oct. 27. Pespas had been missing since Sept. 29, when he was seen in Easton, PA, and later at a bar in the Pittsburg area. Pespas, formerly of North Plainfield and Plainfield, NJ, has been living with his wife in Easton, PA. He teamed up with Lipman-Stern to create the three-part HBO mini docu-series "Telemarketers," which shined a …
Police & Fire
Prosecutor Details Sneaky Upskirt Tactics Utilized By NJ Sunoco Station Cashier For Months
A cashier at a Sunoco station has been arrested for taking multiple upskirt photos of women while at work over the course of nearly two years, authorities in Somerset County said. Miguel A. Melchor-Gomez, 54, of North Plainfield, who worked at the Sunoco station on Stirling Road in Watchung, filmed underneath his unsuspecting victims' clothing in one of two ways from December 2021 to Aug. 19, 2023, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald. said. Melchor-Gomez either pretended that the credit card machine malfunctioned and directed his victims to the counter where he would stand clos…
Police & Fire
NJ's Patrick J. Pespas, Star Of HBO's 'Telemarketers' Reported Missing
Patrick J. Pespas, who starred in HBO's "Telemarketers," has been missing for days, those who know him say. Pespas, 55, of Phillipsburg, was last seen in the Easton, PA area around 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, according to directors Sam Lipman-Stern and Adam Bhala Lough Pespas, formerly of North Plainfield and Plainfield, teamed up with Lipman-Stern to create the three-part HBO mini docu-series "Telemarketers," which shined a light on the truth about the telemarketing industry. It premiered in August. Bhala Lough said on Sunday, Oct. 1 Pespas may have been spotted at a bar in Pittsburgh. …
Police & Fire
Former Employees Forged Over $65K In Checks From Somerset County Contracting Firm: Prosecutor
Two former workers at a contracting firm in Somerset County were arrested for allegedly forging checks from their employer and making more than $65,000 in unauthorized purchases. Carlos R. Escobar, 38, of Jefferson Avenue in North Plainfield, and Ciro A. Saenz-Puentes, 44, of Remson Avenue in New Brunswick, were each charged with theft by deception, forgery, and uttering a false document, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said in a release on Monday, Sept. 25. Escobar and Saenz-Puentes became the center of an investigation when the owner of the contracting company they were former…
Police & Fire
Police Probe Burglary At Somerset County Wireless Store
Know anything? Police are investigating an early morning burglary at a wireless store in Somerset County. The burglar was seen on surveillance footage taking several Apple products from the Best Wireless store on Somerset Street in North Plainfield around 5:30 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 1, police said in a Monday release. Anyone with information is asked to contact DSgt. Domizi at 908-769-2937 or send an email to adomizi@northplainfieldnj.gov. Tips can also be sent to tips@npmail.org.
Police & Fire
Seen
HIM? Somerset County Man Wanted On 5 Counts Of Attempted Murder: Prosecutor
Seen him? Authorities in Somerset County are seeking the public’s help tracking down their ‘Fugitive of the Month,’ a 32-year-old East Brunswick man charged with five counts of attempted murder and other offenses. Cristobal Avila, 32, was charged with five counts of first-degree attempted murder and various weapons offenses following a North Plainfield incident from Sunday, April 11, 2021, the Somerset County Prosecutor’s office said in a Thursday, Sept. 7 release. Avila’s last known address was near N. Plainfield & East Brunswick, investigators say. He has brown hair and eyes and stand…
Police & Fire
2 Injured, 1 Critically, In Somerset County Fire: Prosecutor
Authorities are investigating the cause of a Somerset County fire that hurt two residents, one critically. The blaze broke out at a home on Mountain Avenue in North Plainfield around 3:10 a.m. Sunday, June 4, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said alongside local Police Chief William Parenti. Two men were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment, where one of them remained in critical condition, McDonald said. The cause of the fire was being investigated but did not seem suspicious, the prosecutor added. Assisting agencies include fire crews in Bridgewater/Finderne, Bound Brook,…
Schools
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28
The first winter storm of the season is causing a change in plans for New Jersey schools on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Some districts have delayed openings while others are closed completely. Here's a list of which school are closed or delayed for Tuesday, Feb. 28. Check your school/district's website for details. Bedminster: 10: 50 a.m. start Bellville: Delayed Bergen County Tech: Closed Bergenfield: 2-hour delay Bernards: 2-hour delay Bloomfield: Delay Bloomingdale: Closed Bogota: Delayed Butler: Closed Cliffside Park: 10 a.m. start Clifton: Delayed Closter: Delayed Cresskill: Delayed Demarest: …
Police & Fire
NJ Man Who Sexually Assaulted 9-Year-Old Captured Trying To Board Flight: Prosecutor
A 39-year-old Somerset County man was arrested for sexually assaulting a 9-year-old girl while boarding a flight from Chicago to Utah, authorities said. The alleged victim told a detective with the prosecutor's office that she had been sexually assaulted by Fabian Osuna-Vargas on Oct. 19 in North Plainfield, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Two days later, Osuna-Vargas was getting on a flight from Chicago, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah on Oct. 21 when he was captured, McDonald said. He was charged with aggravated sex assault and child endangerment. Osuna-Varga…
Police & Fire
Child, Adult Pedestrians Seriously Hurt In Halloween Hit-Run: Police
A child and adult were hospitalized with serious injuries in a Halloween Night hit-and-run in North Plainfield, authorities said. The 7-year-old boy and 21-year-old woman were struck on Mountain Road and Jeffery Street just after 6:22 p.m., Police Capt. Alan McKay said. Both were taken to a local hospital with serious injuries, where one victim was admitted, McKay said. Witnesses described the suspect vehicle as a gold or black sedan.
Police & Fire
Murder
: Pair Charged In Fatal Jersey City Shooting
A pair of men have been charged with murder in a Jersey City shooting that left one man dead in June, authorities announced. Quadre Domnie, 21, of Jersey City, and Jekhi Wade, 19, of North Plainfield, are responsible for killing Kyle Howard, 34, of Newark, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said. Domnie and Wade shot Howard around 11:15 p.m. on Forrest Street and MLK Drive on Sunday, June 12, Suarez said. Howard was rushed to the hospital in a private car and later died. Both were arrested without incident on Monday, July 25, 2022 near Cator and Rose avenues in Jersey City. Domnie and …
Police & Fire
Man Shot At NJ House Party
A 20-year-old New Jersey man was shot during a house party Friday, July 8, authorities said. The victim was one of the dozens of guests at a party somewhere near Arnold Avenue when authorities found him at Vermeule Park in North Plainfield suffering a gunshot wound to his upper body around 10:45 p.m., Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Officers and responding Emergency Medical Personnel tended to the shooting victim who was treated at an undisclosed area hospital for a non-life threatening gunshot wound. Authorities are attempting to determine the motive for the shootin…
Police & Fire
US Marshals Nab 3rd Suspect From NJ Murder Case In North Carolina, Prosecutor Says
A third suspect wanted in a New Jersey murder case was nabbed by US Marshals agents in North Carolina, authorities said. Jose Branch, of Plainfield, was tracked down in Raleigh in connection with the March 1 shooting death of Steve Camino in North Plainfield, Acting Prosecutor Annmarie Taggart said. He was charged with first-degree conspiracy to commit murder and extradited from North Carolina to Somerset County on Tuesday, April 19, Taggart said. Branch was jailed pending a detention hearing. Kenneth Hill, 21 of Plainfield, and Daniel Carrera-Cardona, 22, of Piscataway, wer…
Police & Fire
2 Nabbed In Deadly Shooting Of Somerset County Man, Prosecutor Says
Two suspects have been charged in connection with the deadly shooting of a Somerset County man earlier this month, authorities said. Kenneth Hill, of Plainfield, and Daniel Carrera Cardona, of Piscataway, are charged with first-degree murder and other offenses in the homicide of Steve J. Camino, 26, of North Plainfield, Acting Somerset County Prosecutor Thomas Chirichella said alongside other county officials. Camino was found wounded as officers responded to the shooting report near Grove Street and Prospect Place in North Plainfield just after 9:35 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1, Chir…
News
Victims Of Deadly Edison Crash Identified
Authorities have released the names of the victims killed in an Edison crash. Ziyad Elsaedi, 21, of North Plainfield, was heading southbound in Route 1 when he struck a tree at Jeff Street around 10:15 p.m., on Feb. 6, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan said. Meyvelin Nunez-Lopez, 19, of Plainfield — who was in the front passenger seat — died. Two other passengers were critically injured, authorities said. A GoFundMe page for her family had raised more than $1,300 as of Feb. 12. The investigation is active and continuing. Anyone…
Police & Fire
PA Trio Charged With Attempted Murder In Shooting Of NJ Motorcyclist On I-287
Three Pennsylvania men were charged in a drive-by shooting on Interstate 287 in New Jersey that injured a motorcyclist over the weekend, authorities said. Matthew Plaza, 32, of Allentown; Luis Velez, 37, of Bethlehem; and Raymond Bethancourt, 35, of Shillington have been arrested on various weapons charges while Plaza is also facing a charge of attempted murder, New Jersey State Police said. Troopers from the Somerville Station responded to Chimney Rock Road in Bridgewater, where the motorcyclist had called 911 saying another driver brandished a gun and shot him on the highway around 6:40 p…
News
NJ Releases Hate Crime Totals By Town, Race, More: Guess Which County Had The Most
Nearly 40% of all hate crimes reported in New Jersey last year were against Blacks, more than the combined total against whites, Jews, Latinos and Muslims, according to State Police crime figures released Tuesday. The town with the most reported bias incidents in 2020 was Lakewood, the figures show. More than half of all reported bias incidents in New Jersey last year involved straight harassment, as opposed to vandalism and other related crimes. More than 13% occurred at schools, parks or playgrounds. The county with the most, overall, was Monmouth. The preliminary data released Tuesday…
Police & Fire
NJ Dad Charged With Attempted Murder Of 2-Year-Old Daughter At Motel
A New Jersey dad has been charged with first degree attempted murder after surveillance tapes caught him putting his 2-year-old daughter in a plastic bag and carrying her through a New Jersey motel, authorities said. North Plainfield police responded to a Route 22 motel on reports of a baby inside of a bag around 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 23, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. There, they found a man later identified as Lamar S. Waller -- the girl's dad -- holding his child, Robertson said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W.…
Lifestyle
Community Helps North Plainfield Couple Rebuild After Home Destroyed By Arsonist
The community is rallying for an engaged North Plainfield couple whose home under construction was destroyed by an arsonist. Mike Carroccia, 25, and his fiancé, Taylor Miller, 24, awoke to a phone call from a neighbor shortly before 3 a.m. on May 27, with some devastating news. “Your house is on fire -- the roof just collapsed and your front door has fallen down,” the neighbor told them. Mike and Taylor immediately jumped out of bed and ran out the door to check on the state of the home, and they couldn’t believe their eyes. “Watching the firefighters, seeing our neighbors homes catch fir…
Police & Fire
Update
: Arsonist Charged In North Plainfield Fire That Burned Through 3 Houses
A 26-year-old North Plainfield man has been charged with setting a fire that burned down three houses -- one of which was under construction. Jonathan Davies, 26, was arrested following an investigation into the early-morning Wednesday blaze, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson and Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor and North Plainfield Chief of Police William Parenti said Thursday. Police and fire companies from several towns responded to the three-alarm blaze on Maple Avenue around 2:40 a.m., Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Rober…
Police & Fire
Covid-
19: NY Man Wanted In Ramapo, Mahwah Drug Thefts Coughs On Montvale Officers, Police Say
One of three people wanted for swiping $5,000 worth of allergy medicine from CVS stores in Mahwah and Ramapo claimed he had COVID-19 while repeatedly coughing on the Montvale police officers who captured them, authorities said Wednesday. He also gouged the paint on a police vehicle with his handcuffs, they said. Officer John Guico was at the CVS on Chestnut Ridge Road around 4 p.m. Tuesday when he spotted a vehicle described in an alert issued by Ramapo police shortly after a theft at one of their stores, Montvale Police Chief Joseph Sanfilippo said. Police arrested the trio, identified as…
Police & Fire
Njsp
Looking For Witnesses To Crash That Killed North Plainfield Woman, 29
The State Police are asking anyone who witnessed a deadly wrong-way crash or who was saw anything immediately prior to the crash to come forward, the agency said in a statement Monday. Around 1:46 a.m. Nov. 25, a 2013 was traveling north in the southbound express lanes of the New Jersey Turnpike in Woodbridge, near milepost 94.1. The Subaru crashed into a 2008 Honda head-on, killing the driver, 29-year-old Kristen Leary of North Plainfied. North Plainfield Crash Victim Was 'Fiercely Independent' Witnesses are asked to call the Cranbury Station Detective Bureau at 609-860-…
Police & Fire
Update
: State Police Looking For Witnesses To Crash That Killed Woman, 29
UPDATE, Dec. 2: The State Police are asking for witnesses to the head-on collision that killed the North Plainfield woman last week. Click here for more. Original story is below: Outspoken. Independent. Caring. This is how Kristen Leary of North Plainfield is being remembered. Leary. 29, was killed after being struck head-on by a 23-year-old man early Monday morning on the New Jersey Turnpike, authorities said. More than $12,000 had been raised on a GoFundMe to help with costs associated with Leary's funeral as of Wednesday morning. "She was fiercely independent, known for h…
Police & Fire
North Plainfield Woman, 29, Killed By Wrong-Way NJ Turnpike Driver, State Police Say
A 29-year-old North Plainfield woman died after a wrong-way driver on the New Jersey Turnpike hit her car head-on early Monday morning, authorities said. UPDATE: A GoFundMe campaign has been started to help with funeral expenses Kristen Leary was headed southbound in Woodbridge when she was hit by a 23-year-old State College, Pennsylvania man hit her near milepost 94.1 around 1:45 a.m., a New Jersey State Police spokesman said. The wrong-way driver was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick with serious injuries, State Police said. Neither car contained pa…
Police & Fire
Prosecutor: Husband Helped Union County Woman Embezzle $100,000 From Bergen Business
A Union County woman embezzled $100,000 from a Bergen County company with her husband’s help, said authorities who busted both. Kristine Whiting, 44, of North Plainfield took business checks from her former employer and either cashed them or deposited them into bank accounts in hers or her husband’s name, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. Detectives charged Whiting and her husband, 45-year-old trucker James Whiting, with conspiracy. Kritine Whiting also was charged with money laundering. Both were released pending Oct. 23 first appearances in Central Judicial Processing Court in…
Police & Fire
Boy, 15, Charged In Fatal Shooting Of Plainfield Teen During National Night Out
A 15-year-old turned himself in Friday in connection with the shooting death of another youth in North Plainfield days earlier, authorities said. Altereek Johnson, 16, of Plainfield, was found shot to death around 7:30 p.m. in the area of Steiner Avenue, the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office said. He had been shot in the chest. North Plainfield's National Night Out activities were underway nearby at the time he was found. The activities, held nationwide, are sponsored by law enforcement and other public safety agencies. The alleged shooter was identified as Q.C. and has…
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