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Man Tried Scamming Firm That Represented Him Out Of $2.8K, Arrested In Metuchen: Cops
A Garfield man was arrested months after allegedly attempting to defraud a Lyndhurst law firm that had represented him using a fraudulent check, police said.
Jason D. Ibanez, 29, was charged with third-degree forgery following an investigation into a $2,800 check that was cashed in Jersey City on Sept. 19, 2025, according to Lyndhurst Police Capt. Paul Haggerty.
Officer Anthony Morreale began investigating the incident on Sept. 24 after the check was linked to a Lyndhurst-based injury attorney’s office, police said. Authorities said Ibanez, a former client of the firm, attempted the fraud b…
Auto Body Repair Owner Stole $42K From Insurers: Monmouth County Prosecutor
A 67-year-old Howell man was arrested and charged with stealing more than $42,000 from insurers at the auto-body repair shop he owned, authorities announced Tuesday, Jan. 13
Beginning in September 2023, Barry Barbella would deposit claim checks cut by insurance companies into a business account for the now-closed Franklin Auto Body, Inc. in Englishtown, despite performing no work on the corresponding vehicle, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said.
Barbella did this at least six times, taking more than $42,265, Santiago said. Barbella used the money to fund payroll and cover perso…
Big League Lie: Man Claimed MLB Career While Scamming Women, Dodging Sex Offender Registry: DOJ
He said he was going pro in baseball — but what he really went pro in was lying, scamming, and disappearing from the sex offender registry, prosecutors in Virginia say.
Now, he's going to prison.
A Roanoke man who told women he was a Major League Baseball prospect, forged six-figure checks, used burner phones to impersonate team officials, and failed to register as a sex offender pleaded guilty in federal court earlier this year, federal officials announced.
Now, Janike Dunbar Holt — a man who goes by many names — has been sentenced to 41 months in federal prison.
Holt, 29 — also known as…
Fans Duped In $200K Jason Kelce Forgery Scheme: Philly Man Pleads Guilty
A Philadelphia man has pleaded guilty to his role in a $200,000 fake memorabilia scheme involving forged Jason Kelce signatures on more than 1,100 items, Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said and court records show as of Monday, Aug. 25.
Scheme Involved Fake Signatures, Phony Verification
Robert Capone, 51, admitted to forging and distributing fraudulent memorabilia falsely labeled as being signed by the former Philadelphia Eagles center. He pleaded guilty on Tuesday, Aug. 5 to felony charges of theft by deception, conspiracy, and deceptive business practices, along with a mi…
DUI Crash In Beachside Vacation Spot Leaves Cyclist Badly Injured, Police Say
A 21-year-old international student was seriously injured when a suspected drunk driver hit him in the heart of Rehoboth Beach, a popular Delaware vacation destination, police said.
The crash happened just after 1 a.m. on Wednesday, July 9, in the 300 block of Rehoboth Avenue, according to the Rehoboth Beach Police Department.
Investigators say Megan Smith, 20, of Lewes, was driving a Jeep Wrangler westbound on Rehoboth Avenue when she hit the cyclist, who was in the area on a J-1 visa.
The crash caused potentially life-threatening injuries, police said after the cyclist was rushed t…
Sex Offender Faked MLB Career, Scammed Women, Skipped Registry In Virginia: DOJ
He said he was going pro in baseball — but what he really went pro in was lying, scamming, and disappearing from the sex offender registry, prosecutors in Virginia say.
A Roanoke man who told women he was a Major League Baseball prospect, forged six-figure checks, used burner phones to impersonate team officials, and failed to register as a sex offender has pleaded guilty in federal court as part of an elaborate scheme, federal officials announced.
He went by many names while executing his scheme.
Janike Dunbar Holt, 29 — also known as “Nike,” “Janike Tagovailoa,” “Keanu Tagovailoa,” and “…
Ex-Bar Director Accused Of $314K Theft As Son Flaunts Lavish Trips, Cosmetic Work Online: PA AG
A Pennsylvania woman is accused of stealing over $300,000 from the Cambria County Bar Association to fund luxury expenses including cosmetic procedures, vacations, and donations to her family’s nonprofit, Attorney General Dave Sunday announced Wednesday, May 7.
Robin Hagins, 56, of Johnstown, the former executive director of the CCBA, was charged with Theft by Unlawful Taking, Misappropriation of Funds Received, and Forgery following an investigation by the 51st Statewide Investigating Grand Jury. Her bail was set at $150,000 unsecured.
Hagins allegedly misappropriated a total of $314,759 b…
Paterson Council President, Campaign Team Stole, Forged Ballots To Win 2020 Election: NJ AG
A New Jersey city council president rigged the vote to keep his seat — and now he’s facing a fresh round of felony charges, state officials say.
Alex Mendez, the Paterson City Council President, is facing new election fraud charges alongside his wife and three others, including campaign workers, after allegedly stealing and forging ballots to win a municipal election in May 2020, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin announced Wednesday, April 30.
According to a 10-count superseding indictment, Mendez and his co-conspirators are accused of forging ballots and voter registrations and s…
ID Theft Ring Busted With Stolen US Treasury Checks, Gun, Skimmer, And Dogs: NJ Prosecutor
A New Jersey couple is accused of running a high-level ID theft ring involving stolen Treasury checks, guns, a skimmer, and stolen dogs, authorities announced on Wednesday, April 16.
Peter M. Gittens, 37, and Chambreona J. Williams, 33—also known as Tenisha O. Gittens— both of Raritan Township, have been charged with a slew of crimes, including Forgery, Trafficking in Personal Identifying Information, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm, Theft of Movable Property, Endangering the Welfare of a Child, and more, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renée Robeson and Raritan Township Chief of Police Al Payn…
Cold Case: Mom Leaves Baby Behind, Vanishes En Route To NJ; Car Found In PA
The disappearance of Oklahoma mother Karen Denise Wells during a cross-country road trip in 1993 has haunted investigators and her family for over three decades, Pennsylvania State Police said.
Wells, 23, was driving from Haskell, Oklahoma, to visit a friend in Bergen, New Jersey, when she vanished on April 12, 1993. Her journey ended mysteriously in Perry County, PA—nearly 200 miles from her destination.
After a day on the road, Wells checked into the Pike Motel along Harrisburg Pike in Carlisle. At 7:00 p.m., she called her friend, Melissa, and said she planned to grab food at a nearby Mc…
NJ Apartment Association Bookkeeper Who Stole $357K Learns Prison Sentence
A former bookkeeper for the New Jersey Apartment Association has been sentenced to prison and ordered to pay restitution for stealing $357,250 from the organization, authorities said.
Karly Simon-Sapp, 50, of Plumsted Township, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Kenneth T. Palmer to five years New Jersey State Prison and ordered to pay $357,520 in restitution, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said. She previously had pleaded guilty to theft.
Between January 2016 and January 2022, Simon-Sapp, in her capacity as a bookkeeper for the New Jersey Apartment Association, forged the …
North Jersey Trio Stole $100K+ In Business Checks From Jersey Shore Mailboxes, Police Say
Two men and a woman from North Jersey were accused of stealing more than $100,000 in business checks from Wall Township mailboxes, authorities said.
James Miller, 37, of Passaic; Kaleik Easton, 29, of Bloomfield; and Asia Harrell, 31, also from Bloomfield; were arrested, the Wall Township Police Department said in a news release.
Investigators said businesses were defrauded out of more than $100,000 after checks were taken from their mailboxes. Police executed two search warrants at the suspects' homes and they were taken into custody on Wednesday, Sept. 19.
Detectives …
