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NJ, PA Strip Club Owners Sue Feds Over Withheld Stimulus Money NJ, PA Strip Club Owners Sue Feds Over Withheld Stimulus Money
NJ, PA Strip Club Owners Sue Feds Over Withheld Stimulus Money There's nothing socially distant about a lap dance, which is why most strip clubs had to completely shut down during 2020. Now they want to government to pony up. Denied small business stimulus funds, owners of adult entertainment businesses in Pennsylania and New Jersey have joined colleagues from five other states in suing the federal government. The owners claim the U.S. Small Business Administration has denied them “Restaurant Revitalization Fund” grants for moral reasons, which they say is a clear violation of their constitutional rights. Among those now participating in the…

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by Jillian Pikora
News
Retired NJ Police Chief Who Lied To FBI In Assault On Black Suspect Gets 28 Months In Fed Pen Retired NJ Police Chief Who Lied To FBI In Assault On Black Suspect Gets 28 Months In Fed Pen
Retired NJ Police Chief Who Lied To FBI In Assault On Black Suspect Gets 28 Months In Fed Pen A retired South Jersey police chief whose racist rants made international headlines must spend the next 28 months in federal prison for lying to the FBI about assaulting a black suspect. Frank M. Nucera Jr., 64, of Bordentown was convicted in October 2019 of making false statements to FBI agents who were interviewing him about what was the alleged violation of the 18-year-old suspect’s civil rights during an arrest. Nucera is also awaiting a retrial in U.S. District Court in Camden on additional charges of hate-crime assault and depriving the suspect’s civil rights. The former chief must s…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Newark Projects Dealer Caught With Gun Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen Newark Projects Dealer Caught With Gun Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen
Newark Projects Dealer Caught With Gun Gets 5 Years In Fed Pen A Newark drug dealer caught with a gun was sentenced to five years in federal prison, authorities said. Ricky Terrell, 24, was one of several dealers targeted for running an open-air drug market – slinging heroin, fentanyl, cocaine and more -- at the Stephen Crane Village public housing complex near the Belleville border, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. Several law enforcement agencies teamed up to smash the operation, making undercover buys and intercepting phone calls and text messages, among other tactics, she said. On Feb. 25, 2020, they raided Terrell’s home and found hero…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen
Undocumented Pizzeria Worker From Hackensack Charged With Raping Pre-Teen Federal authorities placed a detainer on an Ecuadoran national living in Hackensack after local authorities jailed him on charges of sexually assaulting a pre-teen. Nelson Fabian Padilla, a 26-year-old pizzeria worker, remained held Monday in the Passaic County Jail following his arrest three days earlier on charges of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault by contact and child endangerment, records show. ICE authorities issued a detainer so that Padilla can be brought before a U.S. District Court judge in Newark for a hearing on his immigration status if a local judge releases him …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Oxy Doc Who Traded Drugs For Sex From NJ Patients Sent To Federal Prison Oxy Doc Who Traded Drugs For Sex From NJ Patients Sent To Federal Prison
Oxy Doc Who Traded Drugs For Sex From NJ Patients Sent To Federal Prison UPDATE: A doctor who admitted keeping patients from New Jersey hooked by trading opioids for sex was sentenced to nearly five years in federal prison. Joseph Santiamo, 65, of Staten Island must serve just about all of the 57-month sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. Santiamo, who saw several patients from New Jersey, previously admitted “knowingly prescribed dangerous quantities of oxycodone – and, even more egregiously, solicited sexual favors from certain patients” in exchange for writing them additional opioid scripts, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig sa…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Bergen County Con Man Who Lived Large Off $5M Of Victims' Money Gets 51 Months In Fed Pen Bergen County Con Man Who Lived Large Off $5M Of Victims' Money Gets 51 Months In Fed Pen
Bergen County Con Man Who Lived Large Off $5M Of Victims' Money Gets 51 Months In Fed Pen A Bergen County con man bought a new car, joined a private club, gambled big, traveled wide -- and more -- with nearly $5 million that he'd swindled from prospective investors. Now he's headed to federal prison. A U.S. District Court judge in Newark sentenced Matthew O’Callaghan, 43, of Upper Saddle River via videoconference Thursday to a plea-bargained 51 months -- a little over four years -- in a federal penitentiary.O'Callaghan “impersonated two bank executives interested in funding syndicated loans for global companies,” Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. Referring to…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Union County Man Admits Downloading Hundreds Of Child Porn Images Union County Man Admits Downloading Hundreds Of Child Porn Images
Union County Man Admits Downloading Hundreds Of Child Porn Images A Union County man admitted in federal court Tuesday that he downloaded more than 600 images of child sexual abuse. Joseph Hinksmon, 41, of Cranford, was arrested by the FBI after downloading the videos and photos during a two-week period in July 2019, authorities said. Rather than go to trial, the former NJIT academic scholar took a deal from the government, pleading guilty via videoconference with a U.S. District Court judge in Newark to receipt of child pornography. U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi scheduled sentencing for Sept. 23. Honig credited special agents of the FBI with the…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
CAPITOL RIOT: Another New Jerseyan Charged CAPITOL RIOT: Another New Jerseyan Charged
Capitol Riot: Another New Jerseyan Charged A South Jersey man became the latest defendant charged in the U.S. Capitol riot. A federal magistrate in Camden released Robert Lee Petrosh, 51, of Mays Landing on a $50,000 unsecured bond pending a first appearance next Tuesday with a U.S. District Court judge in Washington, D.C. via videoconference, according to the Courier Post. He’s charged with entering or remaining in a restricted building, disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. Federal authorities didn’t elabora…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Feds: PA Man Nabbed Collecting 950 Pounds Of Khat At Newark Airport Feds: PA Man Nabbed Collecting 950 Pounds Of Khat At Newark Airport
Feds: PA Man Nabbed Collecting 950 Pounds Of Khat At Newark Airport A Pennsylvania man was arrested by federal agents when he showed up at Newark Airport to collect a half-ton of khat that was flown in by freight container, authorities said. Azeez Adebari, 46, of Harrisburg, was listed as the consignee on a manifest and other documents the claimed the contents as clothing, ground melon and pepper, among other things, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig U.S. Customs and Border Protection authorities charged Adebari with conspiring to possess and distribute 430 kilograms (948 pounds) of the illegal drug after taking him into custody at the airport on Monday…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Passaic Man, Dominican National In 13-Pound Video-Recorded Coke Bust Sent To Fed Pen Passaic Man, Dominican National In 13-Pound Video-Recorded Coke Bust Sent To Fed Pen
Passaic Man, Dominican National In 13-Pound Video-Recorded Coke Bust Sent To Fed Pen A Passaic man and a Dominican national – both 60 years old – have been sentenced to federal prison terms for their roles in trafficking 13 pounds of cocaine. Cellphone video captured the DEA arrest of Ramon “Rafael” Fabian-Pena in January 2020. A U.S. District Court judge in Newark sentenced Fabian-Pena to 2½ years in federal prison during a videoconference last week, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. On Thursday, the judge sentenced Jose Reyes of the Dominican Republican to nearly six years, she said. Both must serve just about all of their terms because there’s no parole in t…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
13 STRIKES: Feds Seize Repeat South Jersey Felon After Gun, Ammo Arrest 13 STRIKES: Feds Seize Repeat South Jersey Felon After Gun, Ammo Arrest
13 Strikes: Feds Seize Repeat South Jersey Felon After Gun, Ammo Arrest A 13-time convicted felon from South Jersey was in federal custody after he dropped a loaded handgun while trying to flee local police on a bicycle, authorities said. Officers responding to a 911 shooting call on March 7 spotted Sharif Hallman, 38, of Carneys Point, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said. As they grabbed Hallman, a pistol fell to the ground, she said. The gun had a round in the chamber and an extended magazine with 22 more, Honig said. Hallman has an adult criminal history spanning nearly his entire adult life, federal authorities said. These include convictions for …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Jersey Shore Contractor Gets 19 Months In Fed Pen For Ducking $1M In Taxes Jersey Shore Contractor Gets 19 Months In Fed Pen For Ducking $1M In Taxes
Jersey Shore Contractor Gets 19 Months In Fed Pen For Ducking $1M In Taxes A Jersey Shore man was sent to federal prison for 19 months for dodging nearly $1 million in taxes at his Manhattan construction company. Bilal Salaj, 55, of the Morganville section of Marlboro, will have to serve out nearly the entire term because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. Salaj admitted in U.S. District Court in Manhattan last October that he avoided the payroll and personal income taxes for five years, in part, by putting the company in an associate’s name and paying workers under the table. The cash came from $3.2 million in business checks that should’ve gone int…

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by Jerry DeMarco