NJ Couple Ginned Up Immigrant Asylum Applications, Charged Clients $1,000 A Pop: Feds NJ Couple Ginned Up Immigrant Asylum Applications, Charged Clients $1,000 A Pop: Feds
NJ Couple Ginned Up Immigrant Asylum Applications, Charged Clients $1,000 A Pop: Feds A New Jersey couple who operated an immigration business from their home are facing a federal trial for submitting bogus asylum applications for clients from Sri Lanka, authorities said. Zuwairul Ameer, 61, and his wife, Claudette Ameer, 63, had been doing it since at least 2007 when a client who was approached by the FBI agreed to become a government cooperator, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Applicants for asylum in the U.S. must show Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) that they have suffered persecution in their homeland because of their race, religion, …
'The Guy Who Never Stopped Smiling' Pilot Killed In NJ Helicopter Crash Mourned 'The Guy Who Never Stopped Smiling' Pilot Killed In NJ Helicopter Crash Mourned
'The Guy Who Never Stopped Smiling' Pilot Killed In NJ Helicopter Crash Mourned Condolences are pouring in for Josef-Ram Yitzhak, the Israeli pilot who died in a Central Jersey helicopter crash last week. The 44-year-old pilot, whose LinkedIn page says he's from Netanya, died when his Robinson R22 copter went down in a South Brunswick canal near Princeton at 3:15 p.m., on Thursday, Aug. 31, local officials said. Since then, tributes have cropped up on social media. Yael Rubinstein remembered him as "the guy who never stopped smiling." The guy who never stopped smiling, no matter what. I guess your laughter is needed elsewhere now. 💔 RIP Josef-Ram Yitzhak Posted b…
COVID-19: These Are Most Likely Symptoms Of New Pirola Variant Identified In Five States COVID-19: These Are Most Likely Symptoms Of New Pirola Variant Identified In Five States
Covid-19: These Are Most Likely Symptoms Of New Pirola Variant Identified In Five States The most likely symptoms of a new COVID-19 variant with around 30 mutations are expected to be similar to the highly contagious Omicron strain based on reports so far. COVID-related hospitalizations have increased in the US for six straight weeks, with a 19-percent increase reported in the most recent week, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The BA.2.86 strain, known as Pirola, has now been identified in five states: New York, Texas, Michigan, Virginia, and Ohio. The strain was first detected in Israel around Sunday, Aug. 20, and cases have also been identif…
Meet Celebrity Fitness Guru Cody Rigsby In North Jersey Meet Celebrity Fitness Guru Cody Rigsby In North Jersey
Meet Celebrity Fitness Guru Cody Rigsby In North Jersey Cody Rigsby, a former "Dancing with the Stars" contestant and Peloton superstar, is coming to Bergen County for a book signing. Rigsby will be signing copies of his new book, "XOXO, Cody: An Opinionated Homosexual's Guide to Self-Love, Relationships, and Tactful Pettiness Hardcover" on Sunday, Sept. 10 at 4 p.m. at Books and Greetings in Northvale. In the book, which is dedicated to Britney Jean Spears, Rigsby chronicles his journey growing up gay and poor in North Carolina to moving to New York, where he went from a dancer struggling to get by to becoming a fitness icon, according to a syn…
HAVE YOU SEEN HER? Missing 15-Year-Old Girl Last Spotted In Paterson HAVE YOU SEEN HER? Missing 15-Year-Old Girl Last Spotted In Paterson
Have YOU Seen HER? Missing 15-Year-Old Girl Last Spotted In Paterson Paterson Police are attempting to locate a missing 15-year-old Hispanic girl who was last seen at a youth facility. Leslie Padilla is 4'10", 120 lbs. with brown eyes and black hair. Padilla, a native of Hudson County, was last seen wearing a black hoodie, black sweatpants and white crocs and is known to frequent New York, police said. She is in need of medical care, police said.  Anyone with information is asked to contact the Paterson Police Department Juvenile Division at 973-321-1126
BUSTED: Repeat Offender Got Car Loan Using Hillsdale Resident's Stolen ID, Police Charge BUSTED: Repeat Offender Got Car Loan Using Hillsdale Resident's Stolen ID, Police Charge
Busted: Repeat Offender Got Car Loan Using Hillsdale Resident's Stolen ID, Police Charge A repeat offender used a Hillsdale resident's stolen identification to get himself a car loan, among other expenditures, authorities said. Taheim J. Hart, 26, of Staten Island was arrested in Newark this past January for using a driver's license bearing the victim's name and information, Hillsdale Police Sgt. Travis Woods said. Hillsdale detectives investigating the theft of the resident's identity tied Hart to the car loan, obtained in North Carolina, among other expenses, the sergeant said. A warrant was issued for Hart, who was arrested in New York for a probation violation, Woods said.…
Captain Eyed For Homicide Charge In Italian Boat Crash That Killed Publishing Exec From Bergen Captain Eyed For Homicide Charge In Italian Boat Crash That Killed Publishing Exec From Bergen
Captain Eyed For Homicide Charge In Italian Boat Crash That Killed Publishing Exec From Bergen Authorities are investigating potential homicide charges against the captain of a rented motorboat involved in a horrific accident that killed a publishing executive from Bergen County off Italy's Amalfi Coast. Blood was taken from the skipper following the crash late last week that killed Adrienne Vaughan, the 45-year-old New York president of Bloomsbury Publishing from Glen Rock, in front of her husband and their two children, Italian authorities confirmed. It was all part of a continuing investigation into the captain's condition before the crash, Chief Prosecutor Giuseppe Borrelli of t…
$74K Worth Of Fentanyl, Cocaine: Four Busted In Secaucus $74K Worth Of Fentanyl, Cocaine: Four Busted In Secaucus
$74K Worth Of Fentanyl, Cocaine: Four Busted In Secaucus Four people were arrested in Secaucus on Wednesday, July 19 and found with $74,000 worth of fentanyl and cocaine, authorities said. Franklin Rodriguez-Liberto, a 40-year-old Jersey City resident, Richard Pena-Rodriguez, a 37-year-old Union City resident, Steven Reyes, a 44-year-old North Bergen resident and Christopher Delacruz, a 24-year-old New York resident, were arrested, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said. The arrests come following an investigation that spanned April to July in which $65,000 worth of cocaine and $9,000 worth of fentanyl were seized,  The four were …
Jersey Shore Swimmer, 19, Dies Week After Rescue Jersey Shore Swimmer, 19, Dies Week After Rescue
Jersey Shore Swimmer, 19, Dies Week After Rescue A swimmer from New York who was pulled from the ocean off Bradley Beach on Friday, July 7 died in the hospital on Thursday, July 14, authorities said. Colin Martin, 19, of New York, was swimming to the shore of the Kent Avenue beach in Bradley Beach when he was rescued. “The medics worked on him and were able to get a pulse back,” Bradley Beach Police Chief Leonard Guida told NJ Advance Media last week. Martin was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, where he remained in critical condition until his death, authorities said. “Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Colin…
Rats Overtaking Hoboken: Let The Dogs Out Rats Overtaking Hoboken: Let The Dogs Out
Rats Overtaking Hoboken: Let The Dogs Out A section of Hoboken has been taken over by rats. The city has been dealing with a rat surge on 15th Street, after dozens were spotted near an exposed trash area by 1500 Garden St, Councilwoman Tiffanie Fisher said. The rats have migrated to other areas on 15th Street, looking for accessible food sources, Fisher said.  Fisher said she called in dogs from R.A.T.S. (Ryders Alley Trench Fed Society), a New York City based organization that trains terriers to kill rats to help deal with the problem. A few scattered thunderstorms weren't enough to deter the R.A.T.S. crew from their civic d…
Rapes, Beatings, Brandings: Married Paterson Sex Traffickers Who 'Defied Humanity' Go To Prison Rapes, Beatings, Brandings: Married Paterson Sex Traffickers Who 'Defied Humanity' Go To Prison
Rapes, Beatings, Brandings: Married Paterson Sex Traffickers Who 'Defied Humanity' Go To Prison A married Passaic County couple who operated a sex trafficking ring that raped, beat and branded women with the husband's name while he was in prison have been sentenced for their crimes, authorities announced. Enna Gonzalez, 58, was sentenced to a plea-bargained four years in federal prison last Thursday, July 6, by U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark for crimes that one federal official said “defy humanity.” Her husband, Jean “Poison” Noriega, 52, also took a deal from the government and was sentenced last month to 20 years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea, U.S. Attorn…
Opa! Gyro Project Officially Opens In North Jersey Opa! Gyro Project Officially Opens In North Jersey
Opa! Gyro Project Officially Opens In North Jersey It's going to be a hot gyro summer in Bergen County. The Gyro Project, a fast casual restaurant in Fort Lee, officially opened its doors on Wednesday, July 5, at 2151 Lemoine Ave. after months of anticipation. The restaurant is the brainchild of George Tenedios, an Englewood Cliffs resident who recently opened fresh&co in Newark and Spiro Kokkosis, who owns several restaurants in New York and lives in Fort Lee. Tenedios and Kokkosis have been friends for 25 years and are both second generation restauranteurs with Greek backgrounds. Kokkosis came up with the idea for the Gyro Project an…