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Hillside, NJ

Police & Fire
Passenger Killed, Driver Seriously Injured In Route 80 Crash Passenger Killed, Driver Seriously Injured In Route 80 Crash
Passenger Killed, Driver Seriously Injured In Route 80 Crash A 38-year-old passenger was killed and the driver seriously injured in an overnight crash on Route 80, authorities confirmed. Richard Bahamonte of Hillside was pronounced dead at the scene of the eastbound crash near the Teaneck/Ridgefield Park border west of Exit 68 just after 3 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, NJ State Police said. The driver, Julio Brito, 40, of Hasbrouck Heights, lost control of the Honda, which careened off the road, slammed into a concrete barrier and ended up on its roof, they said. State Police and medics from Holy Name Medical Center tried to resuscitate both occupants. B…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Fugitive Arrested In Atlantic City Shooting: Police Fugitive Arrested In Atlantic City Shooting: Police
Fugitive Arrested In Atlantic City Shooting: Police A 52-year-old Atlantic City man wanted in a shooting has been arrested, authorities said. John Coles was charged with aggravated assault and weapons offenses in the March 23 shooting, Atlantic City police said on Monday, April 10. Officers located Coles in the 1400 block of Atlantic Avenue. Coles was arrested without incident, police said. The shooting incident originated on March 23. At 8:20 a.m., patrol officers responded to the 1400 block of Memorial Avenue for gunshots being fired. Two days later, the victim, 42, from Hillside, walked into the AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, Cit…

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by Jon Craig
News
NJ Man Killed In Construction Accident At Hindu Temple Accused Of Human Trafficking NJ Man Killed In Construction Accident At Hindu Temple Accused Of Human Trafficking
NJ Man Killed In Construction Accident At Hindu Temple Accused Of Human Trafficking A 57-year-old man killed last week in a construction accident at a Hindu temple in South Jersey had been accused of human trafficking, police said. The unidentified man was found unresponsive when police arrived at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir temple on North Main Street in Robbinsville around 3:45 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, authorities said. The Hillside resident was pronounced dead at the scene, located behind the temple where curbing was being installed, according to police. Further details were not immediately released. The FBI raided the temple in May 2021, around the time a law…

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by Cecilia Levine
Sports
Why We Can't Stop Telling St. Peter's Cinderella Story Why We Can't Stop Telling St. Peter's Cinderella Story
Why We Can't Stop Telling St. Peter's Cinderella Story At first blush, the Saint Peter's Peacocks are just a "dude with an ugly mustache and a gritty group of underdogs." Those are not our words — it's how the team described itself in a Tweet, thanking the nation for its support after its Elite Eight run.  The Peacocks' jest and heightened self-awareness might be what make them so loveable: They don't take themselves too seriously, but man, do they work hard.  They made history as the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach the Elite Eight, following their victory over No. 3 seed Purdue on Friday.  The consecutive and unexpected wins shocked fans an…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say
Robbery Goes Sideways: Repeat Offender Released Under Bail Reform Shot Dead By Pal, Police Say A botched robbery in Paterson cost a repeat offender from Union County his life, although New Jersey’s bail reform law also had something to do with it. It was a week ago that Kyle Newton, 28, was arrested in Lyndhurst while he and another man were scoping out vehicles to steal, authorities said. Newton (inset in photo above), of Hillside, had a history of arrests in multiple counties over the past few years. Just as in the those cases, he was released from custody after last Monday’s arrest in Lyndhurst because of New Jersey’s bail reform law, records show. He ended up dead less tha…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Video Shows Trooper Talk Suicidal Man Off Route 78 Overpass Video Shows Trooper Talk Suicidal Man Off Route 78 Overpass
Video Shows Trooper Talk Suicidal Man Off Route 78 Overpass A 39-year-old man contemplating a leap from a Route 78 overpass last week has a New Jersey State Trooper to thank for his life. Sitting on the guardrail, the man was yelling and emotional when Trooper Luckenson Noel arrived at the Ramsey Avenue overpass in Hillside around 6:30 p.m. March 2. "Get away from me," the man yelled. Noel listened, he stepped back. But he didn't stop talking. Knowing his words were a matter of life and death, Noel opened up to the man about how he lost his dad when he was young. Turns out, the suicidal man lost a parent of his own. In sharing his own life st…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ ID Thief Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For $450K New York State PUA Scam NJ ID Thief Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For $450K New York State PUA Scam
NJ ID Thief Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For $450K New York State PUA Scam A Union County ID thief is headed to federal prison for 6½ years for illegally collecting $450,000 in pandemic unemployment insurance benefits from New York State. Maurice Mills, 30, of Union Township must serve just about all of the sentence because there's no parole in the federal court system. Mills submitted bogus applications for the benefits, funded by the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, "using the names of other individuals," U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. Mills took a deal from the government rather than face trial, pleading guilty to wi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
GOTCHA! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash GOTCHA! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash
Gotcha! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash Three car thieves from Newark were captured thanks to a Saddle River resident who suspected something sinister, along with force-multiplying officers from neighboring towns who responded instantly, authorities said. Car thefts not only have skyrocketed recently throughout New Jersey the past few months -- they also occur during the day now, all because of new rules that prevent police pursuits. What local law enforcement officers can rely on, however, are their colleagues and their citizens. This played out in Saddle River -- an affluent suburban town off Route 17 near the New York State b…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
West New York Killer Brutally Beat Inmate For Latin Kings 'Hit Squad,' Indictment Charges West New York Killer Brutally Beat Inmate For Latin Kings 'Hit Squad,' Indictment Charges
West New York Killer Brutally Beat Inmate For Latin Kings 'Hit Squad,' Indictment Charges A convicted killer from West New York sent a fellow inmate to the hospital with a severe head injury as part of a deal with a prison "hit squad" run by a Latin Kings leader, authorities said. Daniel Balbuena, 29, carried out the beating in exchange for an assault on a rival of the Gran Familiar Mexicana gang by hit squad members, an indictment returned by a grand jury in Trenton alleges. Authorities last year charged Frank “Lafay” Blake of Hillside and several other current and former shank-armed inmates with an assault at New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, as well as with plans to carry …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Trenton Man Ran Over, Killed GF In North Jersey: Prosecutor Trenton Man Ran Over, Killed GF In North Jersey: Prosecutor
Trenton Man Ran Over, Killed GF In North Jersey: Prosecutor A Trenton man was arrested for running over his girlfriend, killing her, last month in Union County, authorities said. Daaim J. Boykins, 40, is charged with first-degree murder a weapons offense in connection with the death of Schwnaire Jones, 36 of Willingboro, Union County Prosecutor William A. Daniel and Hillside Police Chief Vincent Ricciardi said. Hillside police responded to 41 King St., where Jones was found suffering critical injuries laying on the sidewalk around 9:30 p.m. Dec. 5, Ricciardi and Daniel said. She was subsequently pronounced dead, according to Union County Assis…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
6 Thieves Targeted Luxury Cars, Led Police Pursuits Across NJ: AG Charges In Indictment 6 Thieves Targeted Luxury Cars, Led Police Pursuits Across NJ: AG Charges In Indictment
6 Thieves Targeted Luxury Cars, Led Police Pursuits Across NJ: AG Charges In Indictment Six members of a luxury car theft ring that targeted dealerships and high-end cars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars are named in an indictment filed by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office.  The defendants from Newark, East Orange and Blackwood arrested in "Operation Dealer No Deal" targeted dealerships in Essex, Hudson, Bergen, and Union and took key fobs to steal the luxury vehicles off the lots, Acting Attorney General Andrew J. Bruck today said. The defendants (listed below) were charged in connection with thefts of 22 vehicles valued at over $787,000 …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Drug Ring Member Who Trafficked Coke, Fentanyl-Laced Heroin Into NJ Bayshore Gets 16½ Years Drug Ring Member Who Trafficked Coke, Fentanyl-Laced Heroin Into NJ Bayshore Gets 16½ Years
Drug Ring Member Who Trafficked Coke, Fentanyl-Laced Heroin Into NJ Bayshore Gets 16½ Years A member of a drug ring that trafficked massive amounts of heroin and cocaine into the Bayshore areas of Monmouth and Middlesex counties must spend more than 16 years in federal prison. Guy Jackson, 49, of Effort, PA must serve just about all of the 200-month sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. It was by far the stiffest term handed down so far in U.S. District Court in Trenton following a sweep led by federal investigators. Members of the network funneled heroin and cocaine into the Raritan Bayshore, which stretches from the Amboys to Sandy Hook, forming the n…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
FBI Bust Nets 7 Arrests, 8 Illegal Weapons After Newark Shooting Spree: Police FBI Bust Nets 7 Arrests, 8 Illegal Weapons After Newark Shooting Spree: Police
FBI Bust Nets 7 Arrests, 8 Illegal Weapons After Newark Shooting Spree: Police Authorities recovered eight illegal weapons and arrested seven individuals in what Newark police are calling "an intense violence reduction operation." The FBI and the US Attorney General's Office were among the agencies deployed in the city's hotspots following four non-fatal shootings that injured eight people Tuesday, Newark Public Safety Director Brian A. O’Hara said. According to O'Hara, the following arrests were made: Sabir Williams, 25, Mahdee S. Johnson, 24, and Safiatou Dieng, 23, all of Newark, were arrested Thursday on the 100 block of Goodwin Avenue. Police saw a hand-to-…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Union County Woman Admits Destroying Evidence In $400,000 COVID Unemployment Scam Union County Woman Admits Destroying Evidence In $400,000 COVID Unemployment Scam
Union County Woman Admits Destroying Evidence In $400,000 COVID Unemployment Scam A Union County woman admitted in federal court that she was shredding bogus credit and debit cards -- obtained by a man who fraudulently collected $400,000 in pandemic unemployment benefits from the state of New York -- when investigators came busting in. Detectives armed with a search warrant found Latoyia McCollum, 46, of Hillside in the kitchen of an undisclosed location "placing what appeared to be a credit/debit card into the shredder" while face-timing on a cellphone in October 2020, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. McCollum told them she was on the phone with Maurice Mills…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Indictment: Latin Kingpin,10 Gang Members In NJ Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Targeted State Investigators Indictment: Latin Kingpin,10 Gang Members In NJ Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Targeted State Investigators
Indictment: Latin Kingpin,10 Gang Members In NJ Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Targeted State Investigators UPDATE: Members of a state prison “hit squad” who were already charged with beating a fellow inmate also attacked others while targeting investigators who got wise to them, an indictment returned by a New Jersey grand jury alleges. State prosecutors earlier this year charged Frank “Lafay” Blake, 33, of Hillside and eight inmates with an assault at New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, as well as with plans to carry out another at Northern State Prison in Newark. An indictment returned in Trenton this week adds new assault charges against Blake -- the reputed leader of the Elizabeth chapter of…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Feds: 'Injured' Jersey Shore Mail Carrier Ran Side Business While Collecting Workers Comp Feds: 'Injured' Jersey Shore Mail Carrier Ran Side Business While Collecting Workers Comp
Feds: 'Injured' Jersey Shore Mail Carrier Ran Side Business While Collecting Workers Comp A Jersey Shore mail carrier was quietly running her own business while collecting $150,000 in workers’ comp before an undercover detective caught her, authorities said. Monique Gee, 38, of Hillside certified that she’d sustained a knee injury on the job in Middletown on June 1, 2016, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig said. “On subsequent forms, Gee certified that she did not receive earnings from employment outside of her federal job,” Honig said. The Jersey City native identified herself on social media as a self-employed costume jewelry operator, however. Authorities discovered the ope…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJ Man Dies Trying To Light Fire Pit, Police Say NJ Man Dies Trying To Light Fire Pit, Police Say
NJ Man Dies Trying To Light Fire Pit, Police Say A 56-year-old Union County man died while trying to light a fire pit but instead sparked an explosion that may have killed him, local police said. Officers arriving at the home on Warwick Road in Hillside found the man with burns covering nearly 75 percent of his body just before 4 p.m. Monday, Hillside Police Det. Natalie Ogonowski said. The man likely added an unknown accelerant to light the fire pit, causing an explosion, Ogonowki said.

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ: State Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Run By Latin King Targeted Inmates, Corrections Investigators NJ: State Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Run By Latin King Targeted Inmates, Corrections Investigators
NJ: State Prison ‘Hit Squad’ Run By Latin King Targeted Inmates, Corrections Investigators Members of a state prison hit squad assembled by a Latin Kings leader beat one fellow inmate and were about to attack another when corrections officials got wind of their plans, New Jersey's top law enforcement officer said Thursday. Working from the outside, Frank “Lafay” Blake, 33, of Hillside recruited eight inmates for his shank-armed crew at various correctional facilities, including Northern State Prison in Newark and New Jersey State Prison in Trenton, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said. Blake, the reputed leader of the Elizabeth chapter of the Almighty Latin King and Queen…

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by Jerry DeMarco