Fair 38°
Police & Fire
One Caught, On Sought: Pair Wanted In Paterson Armed Robberies Pursued Through Fair Lawn One Caught, On Sought: Pair Wanted In Paterson Armed Robberies Pursued Through Fair Lawn
One Caught, On Sought: Pair Wanted In Paterson Armed Robberies Pursued Through Fair Lawn A police pursuit through Fair Lawn of two men wanted for a pair of armed robberies in Paterson ended, as Christmas Eve began, with one caught and the other sought. Authorities had been looking for a stolen Chevy Colorado pickup truck used in both holdups, including the robbery of a 7-Eleven on Ryerson Avenue around midnight on Friday, Dec. 22. Paterson Street Crime detectives spotted the pickup and pursued it into Fair Lawn around midnight Sunday. The pair bailed out near the intersection of Canger Place and Bellair Avenue. Citywide Towing collected the stolen pickup truck. Kyle Mazza…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
GOTCHA! Here's How FBI Says It Nabbed Paterson Kidnappers GOTCHA! Here's How FBI Says It Nabbed Paterson Kidnappers
Gotcha! Here's How FBI Says It Nabbed Paterson Kidnappers A Paterson resident who'd just been kidnapped was being shown a photo array of suspects when he suddenly pointed at one of the pictures. The man in the photo, Joel Ramon Garcia, 33, of Paterson, and an accomplice had held him at gunpoint last month during a six-hour car ride to Massachusetts, while demanding a ransom from his father, before releasing the victim two days later, the FBI said. Federal agents quickly captured both Garcia and Julio Cesar Paniagua, 27, at the same time. Credit the victim's assistance and some sound detective work. It began on Nov. 15, when the victim's father c…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
FOUND! Paterson Kids Return Home FOUND! Paterson Kids Return Home
Found! Paterson Kids Return Home Two Paterson schoolchildren who'd gone missing on Sunday have both returned home, authorities and loved ones said on Wednesday, Dec. 20. Amileon Johnson, 12, returned home on Tuesday and Emmanuel Frierson, 14, was back hours later, they said. Port Authority police and the NYPD assisted in the search.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Missing Paterson Girl, Boy Return Home UPDATE: Missing Paterson Girl, Boy Return Home
Update: Missing Paterson Girl, Boy Return Home Two Paterson schoolchildren who'd gone missing on Sunday have both returned home, authorities and loved ones said. Amileon Johnson, 12, returned home on Tuesday and Emmanuel Frierson, 14, was back hours later, they said. Port Authority police and the NYPD assisted in the search.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Second Man Charged In Rape, Sodomy Of Bergen Woman UPDATE: Second Man Charged In Rape, Sodomy Of Bergen Woman
Update: Second Man Charged In Rape, Sodomy Of Bergen Woman A second man has been charged with raping and sodomizing a woman with an accomplice in Elmwood Park more than 17 months ago. The victim had told authorities that she was raped by two men who also penetrated her orally and anally while holding her down on a bed in her apartment on July 7, 2022, according to a criminal complaint filed in Superior Court in Hackensack. She sustained a wrist injury, buttocks bruising and vaginal and anal pain, it says. The woman identified one of her alleged assailants as “Dre” or “Tone”and the other as “Los,” the complaint says. Detectives from the Bergen Cou…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Paterson Detective Justified Shooting Gunman Who Opened Fire In Alleyway, NJ Grand Jurors Rule Paterson Detective Justified Shooting Gunman Who Opened Fire In Alleyway, NJ Grand Jurors Rule
Paterson Detective Justified Shooting Gunman Who Opened Fire In Alleyway, NJ Grand Jurors Rule An armed suspect in a dark alley pulled a gun from his sweatshirt pocket, pointed it at a Paterson detective standing a few feet away and pulled the trigger. What Thelonious McKnight, 25, didn’t know was that the gun’s safety was on. He took the safety off, exchanged gunfire with another detective and was shot. The fatal Dec. 29, 2021 police shooting was justified, a state-mandated review by a grand jury has found, authorities reported on Tuesday, Dec. 12. It was earlier that night when a detective watching images from street surveillance cameras at headquarters saw McKnight and another m…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
TENSE STOP: Clifton Police Find Gun, Extended Mag In Passenger's Waistband, 2nd Firearm In Car TENSE STOP: Clifton Police Find Gun, Extended Mag In Passenger's Waistband, 2nd Firearm In Car
Tense Stop: Clifton Police Find Gun, Extended Mag In Passenger's Waistband, 2nd Firearm In Car A passenger who struggled with Clifton police during a tense overnight traffic stop had a semiautomatic handgun with an extended 27-round magazine tucked into his waistband, authorities said. Officers arrested him and two companions while also seizing a second gun with a magazine that held 33 rounds of mixed standard and hollow-point bullets, Clifton Police Lt. Robert Anderson said. Both 9mm Polymer80 handguns had their serial numbers removed, the lieutenant said. Officer Nicholas Garruto stopped the purple 2013 Dodge Charger on Main Avenue just over the city line in Passaic after witnessi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
STASH HOUSE RAID: Raw Coke, 150 Pills, $22,775 Seized, Three Arrested: Passaic County Sheriff STASH HOUSE RAID: Raw Coke, 150 Pills, $22,775 Seized, Three Arrested: Passaic County Sheriff
Stash House Raid: Raw Coke, 150 Pills, $22,775 Seized, Three Arrested: Passaic County Sheriff Officers in tactical gear safely locked an attack dog into a bathroom as Passaic County detectives raided a Paterson stash house during an operation that netted a third of a pound of raw cocaine, more than 150 illegal pills and $22,775 in cash, authorities said. They also took a BMW and a Hyundai for forfeiture while arresting a second-floor tenant, a fellow city resident and a man from Rockland County, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik said. Complaints of drug dealing focused the attention of the sheriff’s Bureau of Narcotics detectives on the home at the corner of Knickerbocker and G…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Complaint Alleges How NYPD Captain Kidnapped, Brutally Beat Woman In Paterson Complaint Alleges How NYPD Captain Kidnapped, Brutally Beat Woman In Paterson
Complaint Alleges How Nypd Captain Kidnapped, Brutally Beat Woman In Paterson An off-duty NYPD commander kidnapped and brutally beat a New Jersey woman outside a restaurant in Paterson, authorities charged. Capt. Hariton Marachilian, a 45-year-old Long Island resident, remained held in the Bergen County Jail on Thursday, Dec. 7, following his arrest for the alleged Dec. 10, 2022 incident. In what to some might resemble staged professional wrestling violence, a complaint filed by Paterson police says Marchilian viciously grabbed the victim by the hair and smashed her head into the dashboard of his car. But that was only the beginning, it says. Marchilian then chased…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Paterson Police Officer Indicted For Shooting Unarmed Man In Back As He Ran UPDATE: Paterson Police Officer Indicted For Shooting Unarmed Man In Back As He Ran
Update: Paterson Police Officer Indicted For Shooting Unarmed Man In Back As He Ran "Drop the gun!" a Paterson police officer shouts several times as he chases a fleeing man down a city street. Suddenly, two shots ring out and Khalif Cooper falls face down in the street. Officer Jerry Moravek, who fired the shots, handcuffs Cooper, 28, who is heard on a bodycam video telling him, "I don't got no gun." A grand jury agreed. Moravek was indicted in Trenton on criminal charges this week for shooting the unarmed Cooper, who was left paralyzed, in June 2022, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin announced on Thursday, Dec. 7. “Deadly force against a fleeing suspect must be u…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Politics
George Santos Is Out: Here's How NJ Delegates Voted George Santos Is Out: Here's How NJ Delegates Voted
George Santos Is Out: Here's How NJ Delegates Voted New Jersey's congressional delegation all shared the same sentiment when it comes to Rep. George Santos. They wanted him out, and they got it. The serial fabulist (R-Long Island) was expelled by the US House 311-114, with all 12 New Jersey representatives, including three Republicans, voting in favor of his ouster. The resolution required a two-thirds majority vote in order to pass. Santos was expelled amid mounting accusations of criminality. He is only the sixth member of Congress to be expelled in American history. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis), Rob Menendez (D-Jersey City) and Ch…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
State Slams Paterson Handyman Who Refused To Serve Jewish Clients State Slams Paterson Handyman Who Refused To Serve Jewish Clients
State Slams Paterson Handyman Who Refused To Serve Jewish Clients A handyman from Paterson was ordered to immediately stop refusing to serve Jews and take several remedial steps or face serious charges, state authorities in Trenton said on Thursday. Melquisedec Francis must satisfy eight specific demands to keep from being prosecuted, including announcing that he no longer discriminates against Jewish customers, attending training on anti-Semitism and paying a fine, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said on Nov. 30. In advertisements on TaskRabbit and elsewhere last month, Francis wrote: "I am expressing my solidarity with the Palestinian Peopl…

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by Jerry DeMarco