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Beachwood, NJ

Police & Fire
Ghost Guns, Meth, Firearm Seized From Pair In Ocean County Raid: AG Ghost Guns, Meth, Firearm Seized From Pair In Ocean County Raid: AG
Ghost Guns, Meth, Firearm Seized From Pair In Ocean County Raid: AG Two Ocean County residents are facing charges following a raid on Wednesday, Feb. 19 that turned up numerous ghost guns and methamphetamine, authorities said. Law enforcement conducted search warrants at multiple locations and recovered and seized, guns, including guns with no serial number- "ghost guns," extended magazines, and a quantity of methamphetamine, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. The defendants, George Garulle, 56, of Beachwood, and Dana Restaino, 39, of Whiting, conspired to sell a defaced firearm with no serial number, Platkin said. They were charge…

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by Sam Barron
Schools
Parents Fight Back After NJ DUI Super Returns To Work Parents Fight Back After NJ DUI Super Returns To Work
Parents Fight Back After NJ DUI Super Returns To Work A New Jersey superintendent who was arrested for drunk driving last fall has returned to work and some parents are none too happy about it. George Chidiac, the superintendent for the Stafford Township School District, was placed on leave last year after he was arrested for driving under intoxication last October, after crashing into a utility pole in Berkeley Township, causing a power outage, Berkeley Township police said.  Police said Chidiac, 52, was walking away from his gray Kia Forte when officers arrived. He told the officers he was "going home to get help." When questioned …

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
CNAs Attack Patient At Jersey Shore Rehab Center: Prosecutor CNAs Attack Patient At Jersey Shore Rehab Center: Prosecutor
CNAs Attack Patient At Jersey Shore Rehab Center: Prosecutor A pair of certified nursing assistants are accused of beating a patient now listed in critical condition at the rehabilitation center they worked at, authorities in Ocean County said. Dhenmark Francisco, 28, of Toms River, and Jovi Esperanza, 31, of Beachwood, were each charged with aggravated assault in connection with the Sunday, Oct. 14 attack at Crystal Lake Rehabilitation Facility in Berkeley Township, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said. The Berkeley PD was contacted by officials at the Crystal Lake Rehabilitation Facility regarding a patient that had been assa…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Smoke Diminshes As Crews Begin Containing Wildfire Near Jersey Shore Neighborhood (UPDATE) Smoke Diminshes As Crews Begin Containing Wildfire Near Jersey Shore Neighborhood (UPDATE)
Smoke Diminshes As Crews Begin Containing Wildfire Near Jersey Shore Neighborhood (Update) Smoke has diminished as a massive wildfire burned for a second day in Ocean County, officials said. The fire was first spotted at the Cedar Bridge fire tower at 4:44 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 9, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said in an update. The roughly 189-acre wildfire was burning near Fishers Pit, a sand and gravel pit in the Bayville section of Berkeley Township. Conditions have improved after "erratic fire behavior" caused problems for the first firefighters at the scene. "Fire crews continue to secure and reinforce containment lines by mopping up hot …

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Crews Battle 150-Acre Wildfire Across Ocean County (DEVELOPING) Crews Battle 150-Acre Wildfire Across Ocean County (DEVELOPING)
Crews Battle 150-Acre Wildfire Across Ocean County (Developing) Firefighters were battling a massive wildfire in Ocean County that broke out late Monday, Sept. 9, officials said. The New Jersey Forest Fire Service said the fire was burning near Fishers Pit, a sand and gravel pit in the Bayville section of Berkeley Township. The NJFFS first posted on Twitter about the wildfire at 7:30 p.m. Monday. As of Tuesday morning, the fire had been 20 percent contained to 150 acres, after spreading near Northern Boulevard in the Barnegat Pines neighborhood of Berkeley. "When firefighters arrived on scene initial attack efforts were unsuccessful due to erratic…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Teacher Had Sexual Contact With Student On Jersey Shore High School Property: Prosecutor Teacher Had Sexual Contact With Student On Jersey Shore High School Property: Prosecutor
Teacher Had Sexual Contact With Student On Jersey Shore High School Property: Prosecutor A middle school teacher and high school advisor has been charged with having sexual contact with a student, authorities said. Andrew Fantasia, 27, of Beachwood, was charged on Wednesday, Oct. 25 with aggravated criminal sexual contact, child endangerment and official misconduct, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Jackson Township Police Chief Matthew Kunz. An investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit and Jackson Township Police Department determined that between February and June of this year, Fantasia — while employed in…

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by Jon Craig
News
Proposed Improvements To Parkway Exits Could Make Trip To Jersey Shore Better Proposed Improvements To Parkway Exits Could Make Trip To Jersey Shore Better
Proposed Improvements To Parkway Exits Could Make Trip To Jersey Shore Better A trip to the Jersey Shore might be a little less stressful by the end of this decade. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority is proposing a series of improvements on the Garden State Parkway from Milepost 80 to Milepost 83 in Ocean County. The project would go through Beachwood, South Toms River, Berkeley Township and Toms River. Drivers, residents, and other stakeholders are invited to watch this 18-minute presentation to learn about the proposed improvements between Mileposts 80 and 83 on the Garden State Parkway. New Jersey Turnpike Authority The project includes the addition of two ra…

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by Sam Barron
News
Franklin Lakes Home Burglarized, Range Rover Stolen In Statewide Teen Crime Spree Franklin Lakes Home Burglarized, Range Rover Stolen In Statewide Teen Crime Spree
Franklin Lakes Home Burglarized, Range Rover Stolen In Statewide Teen Crime Spree Another beneficiary of New Jersey’s bail reform law broke into a million-dollar Franklin Lakes home and drove off in the owner’s car during a months-long crime spree from one end of the state to the other, authorities charged. Records show Tamir Pitts, 18, has been arrested numerous times over the past several months only to be released almost immediately from county jails or station houses in New Jersey under the state’s 2017 Bail Reform and Speedy Trial Act.  Then he’s arrested again. It was mid-July, authorities said, when Pitts was charged with stealing and then abandoning a BMW a…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Grieving Parents Scramble To Give Son Proper Burial Following Horrific Parkway Crash Grieving Parents Scramble To Give Son Proper Burial Following Horrific Parkway Crash
Grieving Parents Scramble To Give Son Proper Burial Following Horrific Parkway Crash The death of a 9-year-old boy on the Garden State Parkway has left his grieving family scrambling for funeral funds. Jake Olivos' dad, Fausto, of Beachwood, launched a GoFundMe page two days after the horrific crash in hopes of collecting enough money to hold a proper funeral service for his son. The page had garnered $5,300 in just four hours. Jake was ejected from a Volkswagen Passat that overturned on the entrance ramp to exit 89A south around 10:20 p.m., New Jersey Police Sgt. Philip Curry said. "I have no words right now, but I'm asking for a huge favor," the grieving father…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Police ID Boy, 9, Killed In Garden State Parkway Crash Police ID Boy, 9, Killed In Garden State Parkway Crash
Police ID Boy, 9, Killed In Garden State Parkway Crash Authorities have identified the 9-year-old boy killed late Saturday night in a crash on the Garden State Parkway. UPDATE: Grieving Parents Scramble To Give Son Proper Burial Following Horrific Parkway Crash Jake Olivos, of Beachwood, was ejected when the Volkswagen Passat he was traveling in ran off the road to the left and overturned on the entrance ramp to exit 89A south around 10:20 p.m., New Jersey Police Sgt. Philip Curry said. The crash was first reported by The Lakewood Scoop. View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Lakewood…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Jersey Shore Bookie Admits Running Own ‘Pick Six’ Lottery, Cash Prizes Topped $100,000 Jersey Shore Bookie Admits Running Own ‘Pick Six’ Lottery, Cash Prizes Topped $100,000
Jersey Shore Bookie Admits Running Own ‘Pick Six’ Lottery, Cash Prizes Topped $100,000 A Jersey Shore bookmaker admitted in federal court on Tuesday that he operated his own lottery game in Hudson County using the numbers from the New Jersey Lottery Pick Six to award winners. Up to 8,000 participants at a time selected six numbers from 1 to 49 at $20 a pop, Edward O’Neill, 54, told a U.S. District Court judge in Newark. The sole winner of the illegal lottery was whoever matched all six numbers selected in the official Pick Six drawing. Prizes often exceeded $100,000, said O’Neill, of Beachwood, who skimmed a 10% vig off the total bets. Like bookies of days past, O’Neill per…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Obituaries
James Connolly Of Woodland Park Dies, 32 James Connolly Of Woodland Park Dies, 32
James Connolly Of Woodland Park Dies, 32 James "Jimmy" Anthony Connolly of Woodland Park died Thursday, July 19. He was 32 years old. Born in Passaic, James lived in Beachwood before moving to Woodland Park eight years ago. He had been employed at various restaurants as a waiter. He was an avid fan of the Dallas Cowboys and was a good friend to all. He was a parishioner of Sacred Heart RC Church, Clifton. James was predeceased by his father, James Connolly in 2010. He is survived by his mother, Mrs. Debra Schweighardt Connolly; brother, Joseph A. Connolly; and grandmother, Rose Schweighardt. Services are scheduled for…

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by Cecilia Levine