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Police & Fire
Former Ocean City Lifeguard Sentenced After Sexual Misconduct Investigation Former Ocean City Lifeguard Sentenced After Sexual Misconduct Investigation
Former Ocean City Lifeguard Sentenced After Sexual Misconduct Investigation A former Ocean City lifeguard and Atlantic County teacher avoided jail time after he was accused of sexual misconduct, authorities said. Jonathan Howell, 42, of Marmora, was sentenced on Tuesday, June 18 to four years probation, Cape May County Prosecutor Jeffrey Sutherland said in a news release. Howell was a member of the Ocean City Beach Patrol and a teacher in the Pleasantville School District. Investigators said social media posts in April 2021 made several accusations against members of Ocean City Beach Patrol, including Howell. "Since that time the prosecuto…

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by Chris Spiker
News
NJ Restaurant Owner Preyed On Job Applicant, Sexually Assaulted Others, Authorities Say NJ Restaurant Owner Preyed On Job Applicant, Sexually Assaulted Others, Authorities Say
NJ Restaurant Owner Preyed On Job Applicant, Sexually Assaulted Others, Authorities Say The owner of three restaurants in Trenton has been arrested for multiple sexual assaults including a job applicant, authorities said. Gerald Araya, 44, of Ewing, was arrested in Trenton on Wednesday, June 19, according to Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri, Lawrence Township Police Chief Christopher Longo and Trenton Police Director Steve Wilson.  He is charged with five counts of first-degree aggravated sexual assault, one count of first-degree sexual assault, two counts of second-degree sexual assault, one count of first-degree kidnapping, two counts o…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
9-Year-Old Found Strangled In Bristol Church, Tips Sought 62 Years Later 9-Year-Old Found Strangled In Bristol Church, Tips Sought 62 Years Later
9-Year-Old Found Strangled In Bristol Church, Tips Sought 62 Years Later Pennsylvania State Police investigators are seeking tips in a 9-year-old girl's cold case murder.  Carol Ann Dougherty was found dead inside St. Mark’s Roman Catholic Church in Bristol Borough on Oct. 22, 1962. She was strangled and had been sexually assaulted, according to troopers.  Police said Dougherty had stopped at the church while riding her bike to the library. She had stopped there to say a prayer, according to a report in the Bristol Courier-Times the day after her murder.  Then-Bristol Police Chief Vincent Faragalli called her killing "one of the most br…

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by Mac Bullock
News
NJ Amtrak Employee Lied To Feds Investigating Sleeper Car Sex Assault, DOJ Says NJ Amtrak Employee Lied To Feds Investigating Sleeper Car Sex Assault, DOJ Says
NJ Amtrak Employee Lied To Feds Investigating Sleeper Car Sex Assault, DOJ Says An Amtrak employee from New Jersey has been charged in a federal indictment for lying to federal investigators questioning him about a sexual assault he allegedly carried out on a passenger during a trip from Washington DC to Chicago, authorities said. Maurice Driver, 35, of Gloucester City, NJ, was charged with lying to a federal agent in a five-count indictment unsealed on Tuesday, June 4, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Special Agent in Charge Mike Waters of the Amtrak Office of Inspector General Eastern Area Field Office announced. Driver had been working as a lead service atte…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
South Jersey Registered Sex Offender Who Sexually Abused 13-Year-Old Sentenced: Prosecutors South Jersey Registered Sex Offender Who Sexually Abused 13-Year-Old Sentenced: Prosecutors
South Jersey Registered Sex Offender Who Sexually Abused 13-Year-Old Sentenced: Prosecutors A registered sex offender in Atlantic County will spend more than a decade in prison for sexually assaulting a child, authorities said. Marcelino Cruz, 35, of Mullica Township, was sentenced on Tuesday, June 4 to 16 years in state prison, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said in a news release. A jury found him guilty on Wednesday, Feb. 7 of second-degree sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a child, and possession of child sexual abuse material. An investigation began when a 13-year-old's mother found disturbing text messages on the child's phone. Police co…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Cumberland County Man Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Child, Authorities Say Cumberland County Man Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Child, Authorities Say
Cumberland County Man Gets 10 Years For Sexually Assaulting Child, Authorities Say A 39-year-old Cumberland County man has been sentenced to 10 years in New Jersey State Prison for sexually assaulting a child multiple times over a decade, authorities said. Juan Hernandez-Antonio, of Bridgeton, was charged in April 2022 with aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and child endangerment, according to the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office. Superior Court Judge William Ziegler sentenced Hernandez-Antonio on Friday, May 31 to 10 years, with a requirement that he serve 85% of that time before he’s eligible for parole, according to the courts' assistant criminal division …

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Special Education Teacher Sexually Touched 14 Students In South Jersey: Prosecutor Special Education Teacher Sexually Touched 14 Students In South Jersey: Prosecutor
Special Education Teacher Sexually Touched 14 Students In South Jersey: Prosecutor A special education teacher who was charged last year with sexually touching seven children has been charged with touching an additional seven students, authorities said. Vincent Root, 59, of Philadelphia, a teacher at Chatsworth Elementary School, has been charged with 14 counts of sexual assault and 14 counts of child endangerment, according to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw The investigation began in September 2023 after a student accused Root of touching him inappropriately during previous school years, the prosecutor said. The investigation revealed that the victi…

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by Jon Craig