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Obituaries
Sussex County Native Claire Fendt Dies, 34 Sussex County Native Claire Fendt Dies, 34
Sussex County Native Claire Fendt Dies, 34 Sussex County native Claire Marie Fendt died Tuesday, Oct. 10 at the age of 34, prompting an outpour of condolences and support. Born in Newton, Claire was raised in Sparta, her obituary says. She attended Sparta Middle School before graduating from Sparta High School and attending Sussex County College. Claire was known as a skilled and creative artist with a fierce love of animals. She had adopted several shelter cats throughout the years and had dreams of opening a cat sanctuary. Claire spent time in Bayonne, and lived in Brighton, England for a year before settling in Philadelphia, whe…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Armed PA Felon Who Hid From Cops In Dump Truck Heads Back To Prison: Sussex County Prosecutor Armed PA Felon Who Hid From Cops In Dump Truck Heads Back To Prison: Sussex County Prosecutor
Armed PA Felon Who Hid From Cops In Dump Truck Heads Back To Prison: Sussex County Prosecutor An armed PA felon who had been out of jail for less than a week and hid in a dump truck in an attempt to avoid police is back behind bars, authorities said. Travon Johnson, 21, of Easton, was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in state prison with a mandatory period of parole ineligibility of 5 years and a credit for 574 days jail already served, Acting Sussex County Prosecutor Annmarie Taggart announced. Johnson pleaded guilty to second-degree certain persons not to possess firearms, unlawful possession of a handgun, and resisting arrest by flight during an incident on Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022. John…

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by Valerie Musson
News
North Jersey Toddler Mauled By Pitbull At Town-Wide Garage Sale: Lawsuit North Jersey Toddler Mauled By Pitbull At Town-Wide Garage Sale: Lawsuit
North Jersey Toddler Mauled By Pitbull At Town-Wide Garage Sale: Lawsuit The family of an 18-month-old boy from North Jersey has filed a lawsuit saying he suffered serious injuries when he was mauled by a pitbull at a town-wide garage sale last year. Samuel Miller Sr. and Roxanne Miller say in court papers that they were at the annual Kinnelon garage sale on Sept. 24, 2022 when a pitbull named Leo violently attacked their son, who was secured in a stroller, according to papers filed in Morris County Superior Court (see lawsuit attached). Roxanne Miller, of Sparta physically fought with and restrained the dog in order to stop the attack, and became covered in her…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police
North Jersey Fire Chief Locks Eyes With Woman While Masturbating In ShopRite Lot: Police A North Jersey fire chief was arrested for masturbating in a vehicle parked in a ShopRite parking lot, authorities said. Budd Lake Fire Chief Joe Compano was arrested and charged with lewdness following the Tuesday, Sept. 19 incident in the parking lot of the Sparta ShopRite store on North Village Boulevard, Sparta police Detective Lt. Tom Snyder said. It began around 11:50 p.m., when a woman loading groceries into her car called police to say that the man in a maroon Ford Explorer next to her was masturbating with his penis exposed, Snyder said. He masturbated more aggressively and tried h…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
2 Schools Under Shelter-In-Place As Mercedes Flees From Police, Crashes In Sparta (DEVELOPING) 2 Schools Under Shelter-In-Place As Mercedes Flees From Police, Crashes In Sparta (DEVELOPING)
2 Schools Under Shelter-In-Place As Mercedes Flees From Police, Crashes In Sparta (Developing) Two private schools were put under shelter-in-place orders after a high-speed Mercedes chase and crash in Sparta early on Tuesday, August 29, police said. Sparta Police were patrolling near Demarest Road when they attempted to stop a speeding black Mercedes Benz, they said. The vehicle sped off and was located after crashing near Tech Flex. The occupants had fled on foot and were arrested shortly after. Two private schools in the area were put into a shelter-in-place order “out of an abundance of caution,” police said, adding that residents should avoid the area as the investigation contin…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Former Sussex County College Student Arrested For Threats, Prompting 2-Day Closure: Police Former Sussex County College Student Arrested For Threats, Prompting 2-Day Closure: Police
Former Sussex County College Student Arrested For Threats, Prompting 2-Day Closure: Police A former student at Sussex County Community College allegedly threatened to harm an employee, prompting a two-day evacuation and investigation that eventually led to his arrest for terroristic threats, authorities said. Newton Police responded to the reported threat just before 7 p.m. Tuesday, August 22, the department said in a release. The college was subsequently evacuated and closed for the rest of the evening, as well as the following day. Karl V. Taguinod, 24, was arrested at his Sparta home following an investigation by the Newton Police Department and the Sussex County Prosecutor’…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
DRUG FRAUD: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine DRUG FRAUD: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine
Drug Fraud: Crimebusters Smash Statewide NJ Ring That Stole, Forged Prescriptions For Codeine An elaborate drug fraud ring operating in more than half the counties in New Jersey stole doctors’ prescription pads as part of a scheme to stock up on opioid-boosted cough syrup, authorities charged. Medical offices in various parts of the state – including Wayne, Morristown and Bridgewater – were broken into by Divinete Jeffries, 30, of East Orange, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. Jefferies snatched prescription pads that were then forged and given to accomplices who submitted them to various pharmacies using stolen IDs and bogus driver’s licenses, according to an indictment return…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Obituaries
Integral Part Of Sparta's Business Network Hratch Kechishian Dies Integral Part Of Sparta's Business Network Hratch Kechishian Dies
Integral Part Of Sparta's Business Network Hratch Kechishian Dies Sparta is mourning the loss of a local business owner after what loved ones call a “difficult medical battle.” Hratch Kechishian died Saturday, July 15, his obituary says. He was 63. An integral part of Sparta’s business network, Hratch was the owner of The Leather Zone in Sparta — a business “he put his whole heart and resources into,” reads a GoFundMe launched by Melissa Prestipino for his family’s support. “Hratch was a generous man who would donate the shirt off of his back,” Prestipino writes. “He gave the community and healthcare workers many of his own supplies during the pandemic…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
House Struck By Lightning In Sussex County House Struck By Lightning In Sussex County
House Struck By Lightning In Sussex County A house in Sussex County was struck by lightning during a thunderstorm on Friday, July 14, authorities tell Daily Voice. The house at 94 Maple Parkway in Sparta was struck, sparking a small fire on the roof where the strike happened around 7:50 p.m., Sparta Township Police spokesman Tom Snyder said. No injuries were reported, and the residents were allowed to stay in the home, Snyder said. At the time, traffic was being rerouted to Maple Parkway from East Shore Trail near Glenside Trail due to a downed tree and wires.

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Police: West Milford Driver Was DWI When She Slammed Into SUV Driven By Sparta Man, 71 Police: West Milford Driver Was DWI When She Slammed Into SUV Driven By Sparta Man, 71
Police: West Milford Driver Was DWI When She Slammed Into SUV Driven By Sparta Man, 71 A driver was drunk when her sedan crossed a double-yellow line and slammed head-on into an SUV, seriously injuring herself and the other driver, on a road along Greenwood Lake in West Milford, authorities announced on Wednesday. Jessica Lima, 38, of West Milford was airlifted to St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson following the late Saturday afternoon crash on Lakeside Road on June 10, township police Lt. Anthony Parrello said. The other driver, 71-year-old David Thierman of Sparta, was taken to St. Joe’s by ambulance, the lieutenant disclosed on July 12. Lima’s 2006 T…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
North Jersey Diner Reopens Year After Fire North Jersey Diner Reopens Year After Fire
North Jersey Diner Reopens Year After Fire Nearly a year after being severely damaged in a fire, the Sparta Classic Diner is preparing to reopen its doors. The kitchen of the Woodport Road establishment — that opened in 2012 — went up in flames on July 21, 2022, severely damaging the dining room and basement, too. Last night 7/21/2022 at 2356 the STFD volunteers were dispatched to the Sparta Classic Diner for an Activated Fire... Posted by Sparta Township Fire Department on Friday, July 22, 2022 In May, the diner announced it would soon be reopening its doors. Well, as of Saturday, June 24, the day had come. The Sparta Classic…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Four Dead In Fiery North Jersey Crash Four Dead In Fiery North Jersey Crash
Four Dead In Fiery North Jersey Crash Police have identified a father and his two children as three of the four people who died in a Sussex County crash Friday, May 26. Click here for details, or read on for the original news report. A 2021 Jeep Rubicon heading west crossed over the double yellow lines, striking a 2001 Ford Ranger pickup head-on around 4 p.m., on Newton-Sparta Road east of Limecrest Road, in Andover Township near the Sparta line, local police said. The Ford Ranger pickup erupted in flames with three occupants entrapped. First responders used fire extinguishers and attempted life-saving measures but t…

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by Cecilia Levine