Fair 21°
Police & Fire
Band Of Brazen Burglars Who Blew Through Bergen, Elsewhere Charged in Crime Spree: Prosecutor Band Of Brazen Burglars Who Blew Through Bergen, Elsewhere Charged in Crime Spree: Prosecutor
Band Of Brazen Burglars Who Blew Through Bergen, Elsewhere Charged in Crime Spree: Prosecutor A band of brazen burglars who broke into homes and stole vehicles in Bergen County and elsewhere in the state – sometimes while the owners were home – was derailed by a group of crime fighters from various jurisdictions. The theft of a BMW SUV from an Alpine home last Christmas brought the crew to the attention of detectives in the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office. The vehicle was used in other burglaries and attempts in Cresskill, Montville, and Rumson, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said Thursday, Aug.. 3. Three of them returned to Alpine on Dec. 27 and had broken into a home, th…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Obituaries
NJ's Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver Mourned As Trailblazer NJ's Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver Mourned As Trailblazer
NJ's Lt. Gov. Sheila Oliver Mourned As Trailblazer Sheila Oliver, the lieutenant governor of New Jersey, died on Tuesday, Aug. 1, her family announced. She was 71 years old. Oliver, who was born and raised in Newark and lived in East Orange, had been serving as acting governor while Gov. Phil Murphy was vacationing in Italy. She was taken to a hospital on Monday, July 31 for an undisclosed medical issue. In a statement, Murphy said he and his family were "incredibly saddened and distraught" to hear of her passing. "When I selected her to be my running mate in 2017, Lieutenant Governor Oliver was already a trailblazer in every sense of…

SHARE

by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster 3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster
3 Brick City Brims Get 100 Years Combined For Murdering Informant, Bystander, Rival Gangster A trio of ruthless Essex County gang members who admitted gunning down a government informant after killing an innocent bystander they mistook for the snitch were sentenced to nearly 100 years combined in federal prison. There’s no parole in the federal prison system, which means the East Orange trio will all have to serve out their plea-bargained sentences: Thomas Zimmerman, 28, was sentenced to 37 years; Tyquan Daniels, 27, got 35 years; Ali Hill, 30, was sentenced to 25 years. That means Daniels and Zimmerman will both be pushing 65 when either tastes freedom again. Hill would be approa…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Five North Jersey Residents Killed In South Carolina Plane Crash: Report (DEVELOPING) Five North Jersey Residents Killed In South Carolina Plane Crash: Report (DEVELOPING)
Five North Jersey Residents Killed In South Carolina Plane Crash: Report (Developing) Five North Jersey residents including a 7-year-old boy were killed in a plane crash in South Carolina on Sunday, July 2, according to CBS News. The single engine Piper PA-32 crashed in North Myrtle Beach on Sunday morning, July 1, leaving the following East Orange victims dead: Sean Gardner, 7, and his mother, Tanique Chu were killed in the crash, along with Odaycia Edwards, 17 and her mother, Suzette Coleman-Edwards, 42.  The pilot, Dr. Joseph Farnese, was also killed in the crash, officials told CBS News. To our family and friends who have not heard/ been notified: For those who a…

SHARE

by Sam Barron
Lifestyle
NJ Celebs Honored By Kennedy Center NJ Celebs Honored By Kennedy Center
NJ Celebs Honored By Kennedy Center East Orange is taking center stage at this year's Kennedy Center Honors. Queen Latifah and Dionne Warwick, both natives of East Orange, are among the 46th Kennedy Center honorees for lifetime artistic achievement. The duo, along with Billy Crystal, Barry Gibb and Renee Fleming, will be feted at a ceremony later this year. Latifah said she was humbled to be honored by the Kennedy Center.  "When we started on this journey decades ago, we were often told, ‘No’," Latifah said. "No, you won’t be able to leave New Jersey. No, if you rap you can’t sing. No, singers can’t become actresses. No, ac…

SHARE

by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
NJ's Natalie Classen Killed In Reading Shooting Was 'Talented Athlete With Relentless Drive' NJ's Natalie Classen Killed In Reading Shooting Was 'Talented Athlete With Relentless Drive'
NJ's Natalie Classen Killed In Reading Shooting Was 'Talented Athlete With Relentless Drive' Support was surging and condolences pouring days after the Reading, PA shooting death of New Jersey resident Natalie Classen. The 30-year-old woman was gunned down around 2:30 a.m. Thursday, June 15 while walking with a group on North 10th Street, police in Reading said. When they arrived at the intersection with Greenwich Street, a man with another group approached and shot her once, investigators said.  The suspect and his group fled the area, while Classen flagged down a cab and was taken to Reading Hospital, the department said. She died of her injury while officers were still securin…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Ex-Con NJ Bloods Leader Known As 'Hellboy' Gets 10 Years, No Parole, After Undercover PCP Sting Ex-Con NJ Bloods Leader Known As 'Hellboy' Gets 10 Years, No Parole, After Undercover PCP Sting
Ex-Con NJ Bloods Leader Known As 'Hellboy' Gets 10 Years, No Parole, After Undercover PCP Sting UPDATE: The leader of a Bloods subset that ruled some East Orange, Newark and Orange neighborhoods must spend the next 10 years in federal prison after he got stung selling PCP to an undercover agent. Tyree Thomas, 29, of Irvington -- known on the street as “Hellboy” -- had two loaded guns to protect the drugs and proceeds in a stash house that was raided after he repeatedly peddled phencyclidine to the agent from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Agents seized a 9mm Glock 19 and a .380-caliber Grendel P1O…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Politics
North Jersey Pols Demand Apology From White House After NJ Mayor Turned Away During Ramadan North Jersey Pols Demand Apology From White House After NJ Mayor Turned Away During Ramadan
North Jersey Pols Demand Apology From White House After NJ Mayor Turned Away During Ramadan A consortium of mayors throughout North Jersey are demanding an apology from the White House to Prospect Park Mayor Mohamed Khairullah after he was denied entry for a celebration marking the end of Ramadan. Khairullah, who was recently sworn in for his fifth term as mayor, was told by Secret Service Monday, May 1 that he had not been cleared for entry.  Khairullah received the news just hours before he was set to arrive. Khairullah was also recently interrogated for three hours at John F. Kennedy International Airport. "As mayors who value transparency and the U.S. legal sys…

SHARE

by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Fugitive Captured After Walking Out Of JC Medical Center: Authorities Fugitive Captured After Walking Out Of JC Medical Center: Authorities
Fugitive Captured After Walking Out Of JC Medical Center: Authorities A fugitive who walked out of Jersey City Medical Center was captured by U.S. Marshals and Port Authority police, authorities said. Shatora Franklin, 27, of Brooklyn was originally seized at the Holland Tunnel on a warrant out of Essex County on April 14 after she skipped a court date following an arrest in late March, law enforcement sources said. She needed to go to the hospital for an undetermined condition, however, and was taken to the medical center, they said. Franklin then walked out -- apparently shoeless -- and was gone before authorities determined which agency was responsible f…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
Two $50K Powerball Winners Sold In North Jersey Two $50K Powerball Winners Sold In North Jersey
Two $50K Powerball Winners Sold In North Jersey Two New Jersey Powerball players won big on Wednesday, April 5. The two second-tier prizewinning tickets matched four of the five white balls and the Power Ball, taking home the $50,000 prize.  The winning numbers for the drawing were: 03, 05, 09, 42, and 52. The Red Power Ball number was 11. The tickets were sold at Horizon House Deli in Fort Lee and Power Gas in East Orange. 

SHARE

by Sam Barron
News
Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit
Shooting, Bus Crash End East Orange Police Pursuit A law enforcement officer fired a shot and an NJ TRANSIT bus was involved in a crash during a pursuit in East Orange on Sunday, responders said. An SUV apparently was being pursued when it crashed and its three occupants bailed out at the intersection of Springdale and Arlington avenues near the Garden State Parkway overpass around noon on March 26. No serious injuries were immediately reported from the collision, which knocked the bus onto a resident's lawn. No one apparently was struck by gunfire. The trio vanished. Detectives work the scene of the crash and bailout following a purs…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJ Bridal Shop Worker Admits Scamming Future Brides Out Of Gowns NJ Bridal Shop Worker Admits Scamming Future Brides Out Of Gowns
NJ Bridal Shop Worker Admits Scamming Future Brides Out Of Gowns A 53-year-old New Jersey bridal shop worker admitted to conning brides out of wedding dresses, authorities announced. Nidelka Mayers, of East Orange, pleaded guilty during a virtual hearing this week to five counts of theft by deception, officials in Essex County said. Victims told authorities that they had each purchased and paid for wedding dresses at Maplewood Bridal on Springfield Avenue, in Maplewood, dating back to August 2022, but had not received them, a spokesperson for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said. They had also stopped hearing from the business. Mayers was…

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine