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Police & Fire
Central Jersey Fire Chief Charged With Theft: Prosecutor Central Jersey Fire Chief Charged With Theft: Prosecutor
Central Jersey Fire Chief Charged With Theft: Prosecutor A Central Jersey fire chief has been charged with theft on accusations he used department funding to buy nearly $2,100 worth of personal items, authorities said. The investigation into Monroe Fire District No. 2 Chief James Carbin III was opened last February, after commissioners noticed financial discrepancies, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said. Taxes were being paid on items, when they were a tax-exempt entity, Ciccone added.  This led to an internal investigation where Carbin, 55, of Clarksburg, was found to have been buying personal items with the fire depa…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ Predator Got Nudes From Girls By Posing As Trainer, Online Dater, Career Consultant: Feds NJ Predator Got Nudes From Girls By Posing As Trainer, Online Dater, Career Consultant: Feds
NJ Predator Got Nudes From Girls By Posing As Trainer, Online Dater, Career Consultant: Feds A New Jersey man posed online as a man seeking romance, a woman offering career help and a personal trainer to persuade female teens to send him nude photos and videos, federal authorities charged. Sunil Vaid, 50, of North Brunswick "used multiple fraudulent online personas on a social media platform and several email accounts to target female victims under the age of 18," U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. "At different times, he posed as a male who was interested in a romantic relationship and could help them start their modeling careers, a female who could help their …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
$1.4M Paid To Suspended NJ Officers Awaiting Trial For No-Show Extra Duty Jobs: Report $1.4M Paid To Suspended NJ Officers Awaiting Trial For No-Show Extra Duty Jobs: Report
$1.4M Paid To Suspended NJ Officers Awaiting Trial For No-Show Extra Duty Jobs: Report Four suspended police officers from Edison were paid $1.4 million during the two years they awaited trial for billing the town for no-show "extra duty" assignments, NJ Advance Media reports. The officers have been on paid suspension ever since, but were put on unpaid leave earlier this month when new indictments were announced against Sgt. Ioannis (John) Mpletsakis, 43, of Edison Township, Patrolman James Panagoulakos, 36, of Jackson Township, Patrolman Gregory Makras, 38, of Cranford and Sgt. Brian Rossmeyer, 45, of Bridgewater, according to the outlet and Middlesex County Pr…

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by Jon Craig
News
PA Woman Arrested In Central Jersey Woman's Murder: Prosecutor PA Woman Arrested In Central Jersey Woman's Murder: Prosecutor
PA Woman Arrested In Central Jersey Woman's Murder: Prosecutor A Pennsylvania woman has been arrested in connection with the murder of Deborah Brown-Hepworth, 65, of Old Bridge, authorities said. Elizabeth Jackson, 61, of Yeadon, PA, has been charged with first-degree murder and weapons offenses, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Acting Chief Donald Fritz, Jr., of the Old Bridge Police Department. On Sept. 17, at approximately 11:05 a.m., authorities received a 9-1-1 call reporting that a woman was found unresponsive in her home by a relative. Police responded to Hanna Lane and found Brown-Hepwor…

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by Jon Craig
News
Central Jersey Woman Slain Months After Husband's Death Central Jersey Woman Slain Months After Husband's Death
Central Jersey Woman Slain Months After Husband's Death A 65-year-old woman was slain over the weekend — just more than three months after the death of her husband, according to authorities and news reports. Deborah Brown-Hepworth was found unresponsive in her Hanna Lane home in Old Bridge by a relative on Saturday, Sept. 17 around 11:05 a.m., according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Acting Chief Donald Fritz, Jr., of the Old Bridge Police Department  Brown-Hepworth, affectionately known as Sonni, was pronounced dead at the scene. Her husband, Harry, died on June 4, 2022. Authorities said only that the cas…

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by Jon Craig & Cecilia Levine
News
Armed Carjacker In NJ Motel Lot Drags Woman, Fires Shot: Feds Armed Carjacker In NJ Motel Lot Drags Woman, Fires Shot: Feds
Armed Carjacker In NJ Motel Lot Drags Woman, Fires Shot: Feds Federal authorities have seized a carjacker who they said dragged a woman from a car at gunpoint, fired a shot in the air and pointed the weapon at the man she was with outside a South Brunswick motel. Jashawn Robinson, 21, has remained in custody since his arrest late last September near his Queens, NY, apartment, records show. The carjacking had occurred nearly a month earlier and Robinson was still driving the stolen vehicle, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Robinson “repeatedly tried to get away, including hitting parked cars and almost hitting law enforcement per…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Politics
NJ Borough's Dem Leader Took Cash In Attempt To Influence Criminal Case: Prosecutor NJ Borough's Dem Leader Took Cash In Attempt To Influence Criminal Case: Prosecutor
NJ Borough's Dem Leader Took Cash In Attempt To Influence Criminal Case: Prosecutor The chairman of Sayreville's Democratic party and employee with the NJ Turnpike Authority has been charged with accepting thousands of dollars in cash in exchange for "influencing a a criminal case," authorities said. Thomas V. Pollando — the borough's former council president and current VP of the Middlesex County Planning Board — was caught between July and August 2022 accepting the cash and saying he'd attempt to use his political clout to influence an ongoing criminal case, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone  said. Pollando, 72, of Parlin, served as the long-time pres…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Wife Found Dead On Front Lawn In NJ Murder Suicide: Prosecutor Wife Found Dead On Front Lawn In NJ Murder Suicide: Prosecutor
Wife Found Dead On Front Lawn In NJ Murder Suicide: Prosecutor A New Jersey woman was found dead on her front lawn, and her husband dead inside, in what police say was a murder suicide. James Jasper, 66, of Fords, is believed to have shot his wife, Lynn Jasper, 69 of Fords, before turning the gun on himself at a house on Soren Street in Woodbridge Wednesday, Aug. 31, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said. Arriving officers found Lynn having suffered multiple gunshot wounds on the lawn, and then found her husband inside the house with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Ciccone said. The investigation is a…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ Forest Fire Warden, Helmetta Fire Chief Killed In Central Jersey Motorcycle Crash NJ Forest Fire Warden, Helmetta Fire Chief Killed In Central Jersey Motorcycle Crash
NJ Forest Fire Warden, Helmetta Fire Chief Killed In Central Jersey Motorcycle Crash A local fire chief and deputy warden with the New Jersey Forest Fire Service was killed in a motorcycle crash, authorities said. Helmetta Fire Chief Christopher R. Acs, 47, of Jamesburg, died in the crash in South Brunswick Township on Monday, July 11. At 3:21 P.M., police responded to the intersection of Georges Road and Summerfield Boulevard. A motorcycle driven by Acs was traveling northbound on Georges Road when it was struck by a 2019 Honda Odyssey minivan.  Acs succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. On Facebook, the He…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Central Jersey Child Porn Manufacturer Had More Than 1,000 Files: Prosecutor Central Jersey Child Porn Manufacturer Had More Than 1,000 Files: Prosecutor
Central Jersey Child Porn Manufacturer Had More Than 1,000 Files: Prosecutor A 21-year-old Central Jersey man was arrested on child porn charges, authorities said. Kevin Roman-Quinones, of Perth Amboy, had more than 1,000 child pornography files, some of which he manufactured, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone said. He was arrested Thursday, June 30, and charged with second-degree possession of child pornography (over 1000 files), and first-degree manufacturing child pornography.  Roman-Quinones was lodged at the Middlesex County Adult Correction Center pending a pre-trial detention hearing in Superior Court. The investigation is active an…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Driver Charged In Fatal Central Jersey Crash, Victim ID'd Driver Charged In Fatal Central Jersey Crash, Victim ID'd
Driver Charged In Fatal Central Jersey Crash, Victim ID'd A 27-year-old man from Mercer County has been arrested in connection with a fatal crash in Central Jersey, authorities said. Egrevel Vasquez-Garcia of Hightstown was charged in the crash that occurred on Tuesday, June 28 on Route 130 in North Brunswick, according to Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Chief Joseph Battaglia of the North Brunswick Police Department. An investigation by Detective Jason Vallese of the North Brunswick Police Department, Detective Jonathan Berman and Detective James Alleva of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office determined tha…

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by Jon Craig
News
GUILTY: Jurors Convict Jersey Shore Porn Collector Who Threw Devices Into Creek To Avoid FBI GUILTY: Jurors Convict Jersey Shore Porn Collector Who Threw Devices Into Creek To Avoid FBI
Guilty: Jurors Convict Jersey Shore Porn Collector Who Threw Devices Into Creek To Avoid FBI A man who threw an iPad and iPhone containing child pornography into a Jersey Shore creek – only to have a drone help the FBI find them -- was convicted by federal jurors of several related charges. Charles F. Browne, 52, of South River, became a target of investigators after officials at Dropbox Inc. tipped them off, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. The FBI obtained the uploaded files, which included Browne’s resume along with images of prepubescent children being sexually abused, the U.S. attorney said. Investigators approached Browne in April 2019 as he left his then-home in…

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by Jerry DeMarco