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Police & Fire
Victim's Ex Accused Of Setting Her Car On Fire At Westchester Parking Garage: Police Victim's Ex Accused Of Setting Her Car On Fire At Westchester Parking Garage: Police
Victim's Ex Accused Of Setting Her Car On Fire At Westchester Parking Garage: Police A 34-year-old man faces arson charges after allegedly setting fire to his ex-wife’s car inside a Westchester parking garage, police said. The incident happened on Sunday, Feb. 16, around 12:47 p.m., when a vehicle caught on fire at the parking garage located at 325 Huguenot St., New Rochelle Police Captain J. Collins Coyne announced on Wednesday, Feb. 26.  By the time officers arrived, the New Rochelle Fire Department had already extinguished the blaze inside a 2024 BMW belonging to a resident of the building, according to Coyne. Following an investigation, detectives identified the w…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
Swatting Sting: Man Admits To Fake 911 Call About ‘Cracked Skull’ In Amawalk, Police Say Swatting Sting: Man Admits To Fake 911 Call About ‘Cracked Skull’ In Amawalk, Police Say
Swatting Sting: Man Admits To Fake 911 Call About ‘Cracked Skull’ In Amawalk, Police Say A Putnam County man has been apprehended for a swatting incident that led to a large emergency response in Westchester, with investigators linking him to multiple similar hoaxes, police said. Mahopac resident Mikel Kolaj, 31, was arrested and charged with three counts of falsely reporting a crime after allegedly placing a false 911 call about a violent assault in progress at an Amawalk residence, New York State Police announced on Tuesday, Feb. 25.  The hoax call came in on Thursday, Feb. 20, at around 11:15 a.m., when an unknown female caller reported "My neighbor is assaulting his wi…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
Child Airlifted After Hitting Head At Thunder Ridge Ski Area In Patterson Child Airlifted After Hitting Head At Thunder Ridge Ski Area In Patterson
Child Airlifted After Hitting Head At Thunder Ridge Ski Area In Patterson A 7-year-old child was airlifted to a hospital after suffering a head injury and losing consciousness at a ski area in Putnam County, first responders said. The incident happened on Sunday, Feb. 23, when the child hit their head at the Thunder Ridge Ski Area in Patterson, according to the Patterson Fire Department. Emergency crews, led by Patterson Fire Chief Joe Pignatelli, soon arrived at the ski area and worked with the Putnam Lake Fire Department and Putnam County Sheriff's Office to establish a safe landing zone in an open field parking area at Thunder Ridge. The child was initiall…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
DWI Mom Kills Man Year After Surviving Crash Caused By Another Drunk Driver: Cops (EXCLUSIVE) DWI Mom Kills Man Year After Surviving Crash Caused By Another Drunk Driver: Cops (EXCLUSIVE)
DWI Mom Kills Man Year After Surviving Crash Caused By Another Drunk Driver: Cops (Exclusive) If anyone should know about the dangers of drunk driving, it's Oriel Dixon. The 38-year-old Egg Harbor Township woman was charged with manslaughter on Saturday, Feb. 22, for drunkenly crashing into another car last December, killing a Somers Point man who was declared cancer-free just two months prior, Egg Harbor Township police said. Almost a year before the crash in 2023, Dixon herself was severely injured after being hit by a drunk driver while on a last-minute Christmas shopping trip, according to a GoFundMe campaign launched after the crash.  In the 2023 crash, Dixon suffere…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
UVA Lockdown: Cops Search For Career Criminal (UPDATED) UVA Lockdown: Cops Search For Career Criminal (UPDATED)
UVA Lockdown: Cops Search For Career Criminal (Updated) Students and staff at the University of Virginia have been advised to shelter in place as police search for a wanted suspect with a reported criminal past. At around 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning, an alert was issued by UVA Police amid a search for a suspect later identified as Nyheem Hill in the Alderman area. UVA Emergency Alert: Police looking for suspect, area of Alderman Rd, Blk male 6'4 wearing a grey hoodie. Avoid area, shelter in place. If seen call 911. — UVA Police Division (@UVAPolice) February 25, 2025 According to police, Hill fled from a traffic stop, has a known criminal his…

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by Zak Failla
Police & Fire
EXCLUSIVE: Mugshot Released Of Ex-College Soccer Star Accused In Brother's NJ Murder EXCLUSIVE: Mugshot Released Of Ex-College Soccer Star Accused In Brother's NJ Murder
Exclusive: Mugshot Released Of Ex-College Soccer Star Accused In Brother's NJ Murder Daily Voice has exclusively obtained the mugshot of 31-year-old Matthew Hertgen, a former Wesleyan University soccer player accused of murder in his brother Joseph Hertgen's death. Hertgen's charges were announced Monday, Feb. 24, by Mercer County Prosecutor Janetta D. Marbrey, following the Saturday, Feb. 22 death of 26-year-old Joseph Hertgen in Princeton. Matthew is also charged with third- and fourth-degree weapons offenses for allegedly possessing a knife and a golf club, as well as third-degree animal cruelty for the death of a cat found inside the apartment, Marbrey said. The NY…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Slain Officer’s Final Wish Revealed As Funeral Plans Announced After Hospital Shooting Slain Officer’s Final Wish Revealed As Funeral Plans Announced After Hospital Shooting
Slain Officer’s Final Wish Revealed As Funeral Plans Announced After Hospital Shooting West York Borough Police Officer Andrew Duarte will be laid to rest this week after he was killed in the line of duty during a mass shooting at UPMC Memorial Hospital in York County on Saturday, Feb, 22. His family, fellow officers, and an outpouring of community support are ensuring his legacy of service and sacrifice is never forgotten. Funeral Service Details Duarte’s funeral will take place on Friday, Feb. 28, at 1:00 p.m. at Living Word Community Church, 2530 Cape Horn Road, Red Lion, PA. Due to high attendance expectations, seating arrangements are as follows: Seating inside the c…

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by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
Registered NY Sex Offender ID'd As Man Who Sexually Assaulted Teen In NJ, Police Paperwork Says Registered NY Sex Offender ID'd As Man Who Sexually Assaulted Teen In NJ, Police Paperwork Says
Registered NY Sex Offender ID'd As Man Who Sexually Assaulted Teen In NJ, Police Paperwork Says The Fort Lee man charged with sexually assaulting a missing New York City girl has been identified as a registered sex offender. In 2017, Marc Piovanetti was convicted of rape of a child under 15 years old, criminal sex act on a victim incapable of consent/mentally disabled, and sexual performance by child under 16/access to view, records show (see below). Marc Piovanetti charges/convictions NY Sex Offender Registry This month, 58-year-old Piovanetti was arrested again. Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said Piovanetti was talking to a girl between 13 and 16 years old on s…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Basement Blaze Fills Home With Smoke In Westchester (PHOTOS) Basement Blaze Fills Home With Smoke In Westchester (PHOTOS)
Basement Blaze Fills Home With Smoke In Westchester (Photos) A basement blaze at a Westchester home filled the building with smoke and prompted a quick response from fire crews, firefighters said. The fire began at 73 Gordon St. in Yonkers on Monday morning, Feb. 24, according to the Yonkers Fire Department, which soon found smoke coming from the basement and transmitted a 10-29 signal. Firefighters knocked down the flames in the basement, preventing the fire from spreading to the rest of the house. Crews then worked to ventilate the home, which had heavy smoke throughout.  No injuries were reported. 

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
Fentanyl, Crack Cocaine Seized From Apartment In Hudson Valley, 4 Nabbed: Police Fentanyl, Crack Cocaine Seized From Apartment In Hudson Valley, 4 Nabbed: Police
Fentanyl, Crack Cocaine Seized From Apartment In Hudson Valley, 4 Nabbed: Police A months-long drug investigation led to a raid at a Dutchess County apartment, where authorities seized suspected fentanyl, crack cocaine, and drug paraphernalia, police announced. A search warrant was executed on Friday, Feb. 21 at 26 Pershing Ave., Apartment No. 2 in Poughkeepsie by the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department following community complaints about drug activity and other quality-of-life concerns, authorities said. The search led to the seizure of:  Suspected fentanyl and crack cocaine; Packaging materials and scales; Drug paraphernalia; An unspecified amount of c…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
Crash Shuts Down Route 6 In Mahopac, Injures Victims Crash Shuts Down Route 6 In Mahopac, Injures Victims
Crash Shuts Down Route 6 In Mahopac, Injures Victims A midday crash on Route 6 in Putnam County caused a temporary road closure and sent multiple people to the hospital with minor injuries, first responders said. The crash happened in Mahopac at around 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, in the area of 466 Route 6, according to the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department.  Authorities shut down Route 6 for about 30 minutes while crews worked to clear the scene. Traffic was diverted until the vehicles were removed. The injured occupants were transported to a local hospital with minor injuries, firefighters said. The Carmel Police Department and Carm…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
2 Hospitalized After Boats Go Up In Flames At Marina In Westchester 2 Hospitalized After Boats Go Up In Flames At Marina In Westchester
2 Hospitalized After Boats Go Up In Flames At Marina In Westchester A mother and child were both taken to a hospital following a marina blaze in Westchester that took hours to extinguish.  The fire happened at the Imperial Yacht Club in New Rochelle a little bit after midnight on Saturday, Feb. 22, when multiple boats went up in flames, New Rochelle firefighters said. Arriving firefighters soon realized that the flames threatened surrounding properties and buildings and quickly worked to put it out despite below-freezing temperatures.  After around three hours, the flames were contained and stopped from spreading, firefighters said, adding that a…

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by Ben Crnic