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Police & Fire
Man Convicted Of Shooting Woman During NJ Hotel Hostage Situation In Front Of Kids: Prosecutor Man Convicted Of Shooting Woman During NJ Hotel Hostage Situation In Front Of Kids: Prosecutor
Man Convicted Of Shooting Woman During NJ Hotel Hostage Situation In Front Of Kids: Prosecutor A 40-year-old Georgia man was found guilty of attempted murder on Thursday, Jan. 18 after he shot a woman and then held her in a Somerset County hotel room in 2022, authorities said. Eder Gelin was intoxicated when he became angry and held woman at gunpoint for nearly an hour at a hotel room in Franklin Township in August 2022, in front of her two children, then shot her three times, Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald, Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella Maeweather said. The woman was…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Somerset Man Uploaded Hundreds Of Child Porn Videos: Prosecutors Somerset Man Uploaded Hundreds Of Child Porn Videos: Prosecutors
Somerset Man Uploaded Hundreds Of Child Porn Videos: Prosecutors A 28-year-old Somerset man was arrested last month and charged with uploading hundreds of videos and photographs depicting child pornography, authorities said. Authorities in Somerset County were initially notified by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMC) that Albert Ketrow possessed images depicting the sexual exploitation or abuse of a child, Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald, Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella Maeweather said.  An investigation was initiated by the Somerset County Prose…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
NJ Man Promised Victims Luxury Cars, Instead He Kept Their $202K: Cops NJ Man Promised Victims Luxury Cars, Instead He Kept Their $202K: Cops
NJ Man Promised Victims Luxury Cars, Instead He Kept Their $202K: Cops A 32-year-old Rahway man has been arrested after he was given more than $200,000 to purchase luxury vehicles that the victims never received, authorities said. Jonathan Najarro, who ran J and J Auto Sound and Security Corporation, became the center of an investigation last October, when the victims reported he had $202,920 of their money, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. The theft occurred between July 2022 and October 2022 in Somerville, said McDonald alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Somerville…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
NJ Woman Tried Killing Child: Prosecutor NJ Woman Tried Killing Child: Prosecutor
NJ Woman Tried Killing Child: Prosecutor A New Jersey woman has been charged with trying to kill a child, authorities announced. Alfonsina Anguita, 21, of Manville, became the center of an investigation after a 3-year-old child was hospitalized on Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. The child had signs of physical abuse and strangulation, McDonald said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Manville Borough Police Department Officer-In-Charge Lieutenant Craig Jeremiah. "Further medical examination revealed patterns and …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
69-Year-Old Repeat Child Porn Collector From NJ Gets Ten Years, No Parole 69-Year-Old Repeat Child Porn Collector From NJ Gets Ten Years, No Parole
69-Year-Old Repeat Child Porn Collector From NJ Gets Ten Years, No Parole A 69-year-old ex-con from New Jersey who'd previously avoided prison time for collecting child porn must spend the next decade behind bars for doing it again. Because there's no parole in the federal prison system, John Schulenburg of Basking Ridge will have to reach his 79th birthday in decent health before he'll taste freedom again. Schulenburg was sentenced on Wednesday, Jan. 10, to the mandatory 10-year minimum that U.S. law requires for a repeat offender as part of a plea bargain, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. Had he gone to trial and been convicted, Schulenbu…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Teenage Trio Arrested In Somerset County After Loaded Handguns Recovered: Prosecutors Teenage Trio Arrested In Somerset County After Loaded Handguns Recovered: Prosecutors
Teenage Trio Arrested In Somerset County After Loaded Handguns Recovered: Prosecutors Three people were arrested in Somerset County after police discovered two loaded handguns following a traffic stop on Thursday, Jan. 4, authorities said. At 3:30 p.m., a Warren Township police officer pulled over a vehicle on Hillcrest Road near I-78, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald, Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and the Warren Township Police Department said. During the traffic stop, police discovered the vehicle had a stolen license plate and Javon Singletary, an 18-year-old Phillipsburg resident and a 17-year-old juveni…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Plainfield Pedestrian Dies After Being Struck By Vehicle In Bound Brook (UPDATE) Plainfield Pedestrian Dies After Being Struck By Vehicle In Bound Brook (UPDATE)
Plainfield Pedestrian Dies After Being Struck By Vehicle In Bound Brook (Update) A 66-year-old man died after being struck by a car in Bound Brook Monday, Nov. 20, police said. The Plainfield man was in cardiac arrest when responders arrived at the West Union Avenue crash scene in front of Burger King, around 6:10 p.m., Bound Brook Police Chief Richard S. Colombaroni said. Officers and paramedics initiated life-saving measures and the victim was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The driver of the vehicle remained on scene and is cooperating with the investigation. Officers and detectives from the Bound Brook Police Department and the Somerset…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Hostage Emerges Screaming, With Stab Wounds After 4-Hour SWAT Standoff In NJ: Prosecutor Hostage Emerges Screaming, With Stab Wounds After 4-Hour SWAT Standoff In NJ: Prosecutor
Hostage Emerges Screaming, With Stab Wounds After 4-Hour SWAT Standoff In NJ: Prosecutor Police have released details and made an arrest in a nearly five-hour SWAT standoff involving a hostage Friday, Nov. 10 in Somerset County. Police received 9-1-1 calls saying a man later identified as Alonzo D. Blakey, 50, was holding a female relative against her will in his apartment on Columbia Drive in Finderne, around 7:20 a.m., Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Blakely was threatening to harm himself and the victim when Bridgewater police arrived, McDonald said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., Bridgewate…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Arsonist Found Unconscious After Setting Fire To His NJ Apartment: Prosecutor Arsonist Found Unconscious After Setting Fire To His NJ Apartment: Prosecutor
Arsonist Found Unconscious After Setting Fire To His NJ Apartment: Prosecutor A 40-year-old arsonist was found unconscious after setting a fire that ignited a Somerset County apartment, authorities said. Dashawn Holmes, a tenant in an East Main Street building in Somerville, was found unconscious by firefighters responding to the alarm set off just before midnight on Wednesday, Oct. 25, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Holmes was taken to an area hospital for treatment. The Somerville Fire Marshall responded to the scene and determined the fire to be suspicious in nature, said McDonald alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Shooting Led To Car Crash In Somerset County: Prosecutor Shooting Led To Car Crash In Somerset County: Prosecutor
Shooting Led To Car Crash In Somerset County: Prosecutor Authoritiew in Somerset County are investigating a shooting that resulted in a car crashing. On Tuesday, Oct. 24, at 9:09 p.m., Franklin Township Police officers were dispatched to Matilda Avenue for gunshots fired and a vehicle crash, according to Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald. Upon arrival, officers located a vehicle that crashed into a local business, he said.  A passenger in the vehicle, an adult male Franklin Township resident sustained injuries from the crash and was transported to a nearby hospital for treatment with non-life-threateni…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Teen Killed Walking Home In Somerset County Was Voracious Reader With Gentle Soul Teen Killed Walking Home In Somerset County Was Voracious Reader With Gentle Soul
Teen Killed Walking Home In Somerset County Was Voracious Reader With Gentle Soul Police have identified the 18-year-old man killed while walking home in Somerset County last week. William Richardson was struck by a vehicle that veered off Route 202 (Main Street) and onto the sidewalk around 6:10 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23 in Bedminster, local police said. William was pronounced dead at the hospital, and the 35-year-old driver of the Nissan Altima that struck him was hospitalized. The crash is being investigated by local police and the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office. According to his obituary, William had graduated from Bernards High School last Spring. His true educa…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Sex Assault Strangulation Among Charges For Somerset County Attacker: Prosecutor Sex Assault Strangulation Among Charges For Somerset County Attacker: Prosecutor
Sex Assault Strangulation Among Charges For Somerset County Attacker: Prosecutor A 42-year-old Somerset County man has been charged with sexually assaulting a woman who he knew earlier this month, authorities said. Mateo Espinal-Brito, of Franklin Township, is accused of sexually assaulting the woman early Monday, Sept. 11, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. The alleged incident occurred in Franklin Township and was reported that day around 5 a.m., the prosecutor said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella M. Maeweather. Following an investig…

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by Cecilia Levine