Fair 38°
News
UPDATE: Fierce Passaic County House Fire Kills Two, Authorities Confirm UPDATE: Fierce Passaic County House Fire Kills Two, Authorities Confirm
Update: Fierce Passaic County House Fire Kills Two, Authorities Confirm Two women died in a fierce Passaic County house fire, authorities confirmed. The three-alarm fire broke out in the basement of two-story, wood-frame home at the top of a long, steep driveway across Hamburg Turnpike from the Stumble Inn in Bloomingdale around 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 30. One victim was found moments after firefighters arrived. The other was discovered shortly before the fire was declared under control around 9:30 a.m., responders at the scene said. A cause hadn't yet been officially determined. Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes, Bloomingdale Police Chief Joseph B…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Windy Weather Challenges Firefighters Dousing Destructive Sussex County Blaze (PHOTOS) Windy Weather Challenges Firefighters Dousing Destructive Sussex County Blaze (PHOTOS)
Windy Weather Challenges Firefighters Dousing Destructive Sussex County Blaze (Photos) Windy and icy weather conditions created a challenge for firefighters who doused a Sussex County blaze late Sunday night into Monday morning. The fire broke out at a home near Maple Grange Park in Vernon, the McAfee Fire Department said. Also responding to the scene were the town’s three other fire departments — Vernon FD, Pochuck FD, and Highland Lakes FD. The fire took several hours to fully extinguish and seriously damaged the home, the department said. “Icy and windy conditions created a challenge for everyone operating on scene, and ultimately the operation continued into the early …

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
News
Child Porn Probe: NY Bank Tech Busted By Passaic County Sheriff's Investigators Child Porn Probe: NY Bank Tech Busted By Passaic County Sheriff's Investigators
Child Porn Probe: NY Bank Tech Busted By Passaic County Sheriff's Investigators A West Milford man who works as a tech for a New York security company had a side pursuit, as well, authorities said. Steven F. Jackson, 44, was charged with being the leader of a child pornography network after investigators learned that he'd used a chat room to share videos and other images of child sexual abuse, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik said. The Internet Crime Against Children Task Force detectives seized several electronic devices as part of a five-month investigation leading to Jackson's arrest, the sheriff said. The Passaic County Prosecutor's Office assisted, he said.…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
FEDS: NJ Men Busted Following Three Fentanyl-Laced NYC Drug-Delivery Deaths FEDS: NJ Men Busted Following Three Fentanyl-Laced NYC Drug-Delivery Deaths
Feds: NJ Men Busted Following Three Fentanyl-Laced NYC Drug-Delivery Deaths Two North Jersey men worked for a drug-courier service that peddled fentanyl-laced cocaine responsible for killing three customers in a single day, federal authorities in Manhattan charged. Billy "Jason" Ortega, 35, of West Milford was the dispatcher who sent Kaylen Rainey, 30, of Manhattan to three different city addresses on March 17, 2021 after promoting "new batches" of drugs, an FBI complaint on file in the Southern District Court of Manhattan alleges. Three customers -- Amanda Scher, Julia Ghahramani and Ross Mtangi -- all died after ingesting the coke, authorities said. Scher texted…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJ Founder Of Tri-State Nature Tour Company Takes Guilty Plea In Child Porn Case NJ Founder Of Tri-State Nature Tour Company Takes Guilty Plea In Child Porn Case
NJ Founder Of Tri-State Nature Tour Company Takes Guilty Plea In Child Porn Case The North Jersey founder of a tri-state nature tour company admitted Wednesday that he collected hundreds of child porn images, federal authorities said. Vaughn Tiedeman, 48, of Living Adventure Tours in Sussex County, was arrested by federal Homeland Security agents on child porn trafficking charges in early 2019. Between July 2018 and January 2019, the West Milford resident “downloaded and possessed more than 600 images of child sexual abuse, including images of young children and depictions of violence,” Acting U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Rachael Honig said. Rather than risk conviction…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
Wawayanda State Park Expanded With ‘Small But Critical’ Land Purchase Wawayanda State Park Expanded With ‘Small But Critical’ Land Purchase
Wawayanda State Park Expanded With ‘Small But Critical’ Land Purchase Wawayanda State Park in West Milford will soon receive a trail addition through a private purchase by the Land Conservancy of New Jersey. The land acquisition, located between Wawayanda State Park and Abram S. Hewitt State Forest, completes the Terrace Pond North Trail and is full of mountain laurel, eastern hemlock, oaks, birches, and striped maple. The 2.5-acre purchase from owner Norma Schadegg also adds a buffer for timber rattlesnake and northern copperhead habitats throughout the nearby cliffs. “Paired with the protection of 10 adjacent acres by The Land Conservancy of New Jersey and…

SHARE

by Valerie Musson
News
Bergen Prosecutor: Driver Bites Detective, Tries To Disarm Another In 22-Pound Cocaine Stop Bergen Prosecutor: Driver Bites Detective, Tries To Disarm Another In 22-Pound Cocaine Stop
Bergen Prosecutor: Driver Bites Detective, Tries To Disarm Another In 22-Pound Cocaine Stop A driver bit one detective's hand while trying to disarm another following a traffic stop that Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said turned up 22 pounds of cocaine. Jaycomm Grave Ramos, 28, and his passenger, Eshaniel Moyano, 20, both of Philadelphia, remained held Wednesday in the county jail pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack following their arrests two days earlier in Ridgefield. Detectives with his Narcotics Task Force found most of the coke in an "electronically operated hidden compartment" in their 2012 Honda Pilot, Musella said. Anothe…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton
PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton A West Milford woman punched a Clifton police officer in the head and then kicked out the interior partition window of a patrol cruiser and grabbed a police baton after being handcuffed, authorities said. Ashley Dennison, 33, was with Michael Rompa, 45, of Edison when officers investigating two suspicious vehicles in the Home Depot lot on Bloomfield Avenue spotted them, Detective Sgt. Robert Anderson said Thursday. One of the vehicles was a 2021 GMC pickup reported stolen from East Windsor and the other a 2020 Chevy van reported stolen out of Edison, he said. The couple ran, but Dennison w…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
IT'S OFFICIAL: NJ Woman Who Drowned Weeks-Old Puppy Gets 180 Days In Jail, Community Service IT'S OFFICIAL: NJ Woman Who Drowned Weeks-Old Puppy Gets 180 Days In Jail, Community Service
IT'S Official: NJ Woman Who Drowned Weeks-Old Puppy Gets 180 Days In Jail, Community Service UPDATE: A Morris County woman was formally sentenced Tuesday to 180 days in jail followed by five years probation for deliberately drowning a 10-week-old puppy in a West Milford lake. Superior Court Judge Marilyn C. Clark, sitting in Paterson, approved the terms of a plea deal under which Tonya Fea, 49, must complete 100 days of community service following her release. She also can no longer own a dog, under agreement with the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office. Fea, of Boonton, pleaded guilty in Superior Court in Paterson to third-degree animal cruelty two months ago, admitting u…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJSP: Driver, 70, Killed In Labor Day Weekend Crash On Garden State Parkway NJSP: Driver, 70, Killed In Labor Day Weekend Crash On Garden State Parkway
Njsp: Driver, 70, Killed In Labor Day Weekend Crash On Garden State Parkway UPDATE: A 70-year-old driver from Middlesex County was killed in a Labor Day weekend crash on the Garden State Parkway, authorities confirmed. The mid-2000 model Ford 500 sedan driven by Rick Attanasio, ran off the road in the southbound lanes at the Exit 137 ramp in Cranford and hit a metal traffic post before slamming into a tree at noon Saturday, New Jersey State Police Sgt. Philip Curry said. A medical chopper landed on the Parkway but was dismissed after Cranford firefighters extricated Attanasio. State Police were investigating the cause, Curry said. The crash occurred around no…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
Horrific Labor Day Weekend Crash Kills One West Milford 19-Year-Old, Seriously Injures Another Horrific Labor Day Weekend Crash Kills One West Milford 19-Year-Old, Seriously Injures Another
Horrific Labor Day Weekend Crash Kills One West Milford 19-Year-Old, Seriously Injures Another One passenger was killed and another seriously injured in a single vehicle crash involving three 19-year-olds from West Milford, authorities confirmed on Saturday. Daniel P. Kearney (photo below) was pronounced dead at Chilton Medical Center in Pompton Plains at 11:19 p.m. following the 9:35 p.m. crash Friday on Lincoln Avenue in West Milford, they said. Fellow passenger Kyle R. Guell was reportedly airlifted to St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson. The 1999 BMW 323, driven by Alexander P. Vanker, “left the roadway and traveled up an embankment and onto and across the front la…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco
News
UPDATE: Labor Day Weekend Crash Closes Southbound Garden State Parkway UPDATE: Labor Day Weekend Crash Closes Southbound Garden State Parkway
Update: Labor Day Weekend Crash Closes Southbound Garden State Parkway A 70-year-old driver from Middlesex County was killed in a Labor Day weekend crash on the Garden State Parkway, responders said. The mid-2000 model Ford 500 sedan driven by Rick Attanasio, ran off the road in the southbound lanes at the Exit 137 ramp in Cranford and hit a metal traffic post before slamming into a tree at noon Saturday, New Jersey State Police Sgt. Philip Curry said. A medical chopper landed on the Parkway but was dismissed after Cranford firefighters extricated Attanasio. State Police were investigating the cause, Curry said ****** ALSO SEE: One passenger was killed…

SHARE

by Jerry DeMarco