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Police & Fire
Man, Woman Shot Dead At Hackensack Nursing Home Man, Woman Shot Dead At Hackensack Nursing Home
Man, Woman Shot Dead At Hackensack Nursing Home A 76-year-old visitor to a Hackensack nursing home shot and killed his 73-year-old wife terminally ill wife and then turned the gun on himself, responders said. No one apparently heard the shots at CareOne at Wellington on Union Street early Saturday, July 15, investigators said. The bodies of Michael Zaccario and Patricia Zaccario, both of Wood-Ridge, were found after someone went to the room to check on them, they said. Police received a 911 call from the facility at 8:51 a.m., then found the couple both dead of gunshot wounds, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. The prosecutor'…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
BI-STATE BUST: Bergen Man, Westchester Woman Had 20 Pounds Of Fentanyl, 2½ Pounds Of Coke: Feds BI-STATE BUST: Bergen Man, Westchester Woman Had 20 Pounds Of Fentanyl, 2½ Pounds Of Coke: Feds
Bi-state Bust: Bergen Man, Westchester Woman Had 20 Pounds Of Fentanyl, 2½ Pounds Of Coke: Feds A Bergen County man and a woman from Westchester were busted with 20 pounds of deadly fentanyl and 2½ pounds of cocaine for sale, federal authorities said. Plinio Junior Pineda Lopez, 33, of Oakland and Lorendy Diaz Beltre De Inoa, 27, of Yonkers were arrested with 1.5 kilos of fentanyl in Wallington, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said Wednesday. Nearly eight more kilos of hidden fentanyl were found during a court-approved search on Tuesday, July 11, of Lopez’s Hillside Avenue home just off West Oakland Avenue and down the street from an entrance/exit for Route 287, inve…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Montvale Man Convicted Of Murdering Parents, Brothers Freed After 45 Years Montvale Man Convicted Of Murdering Parents, Brothers Freed After 45 Years
Montvale Man Convicted Of Murdering Parents, Brothers Freed After 45 Years A New Jersey convict who drew international attention after he shot and killed his entire family in their Bergen County home on Thanksgiving weekend 47 years ago has been paroled. Harry De La Roche, 64, had been denied six times and was told in 2019 that he'd have to wait until 2028 before he could petition the Parole Board again. However, records show a variety of work, annual reviews and other credits combined to free De La Roche on June 29 after 45 years behind bars. As with all state inmates, the 6-foot-3-inch, 219-pound De La Roche must first pull time at a halfway house while findin…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJ Broker Scammed Grieving Army Families Out Of $3.5 Million In Death Benefits, Feds Charge NJ Broker Scammed Grieving Army Families Out Of $3.5 Million In Death Benefits, Feds Charge
NJ Broker Scammed Grieving Army Families Out Of $3.5 Million In Death Benefits, Feds Charge Families of soldiers killed in war lost nearly $3.5 million to a merciless financial counselor from New Jersey who exploited their grief, federal authorities have charged. Caz Craffy, 41, worked for the United States Army when he defrauded two dozen Gold Star families who trusted him out of death benefits, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said on Friday, July 7. Craffy – also known as “Carz Craffey” – “took advantage of his role as an Army financial counselor, using lies and deception to steer their investments in a way that would make him money,” Sellinger said during a new…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
AT LONG LAST: Fort Lee Bar Owner’s Killer Returned To NJ After 30 Years AT LONG LAST: Fort Lee Bar Owner’s Killer Returned To NJ After 30 Years
AT Long Last: Fort Lee Bar Owner’s Killer Returned To NJ After 30 Years Justice may have been delayed, but it isn't being denied to loved ones of a Bergen County businessman who was tortured, robbed and savagely slain in his Hudson River apartment three decades ago. Jimmy Polites began the night of Aug. 4, 1994 with friends at the tavern he co-owned in Fort Lee. Hours later he was bound to a chair and hanged with an electrical cord in his Edgewater townhouse. It has taken nearly 30 years for his killer to finally pay. Thomas Christopher James was released from a New York State prison late this week after serving 28 years for murdering a reputed Long Island mo…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
ROAD RAGE: Firefighter Gets 5-Year Prison Term For Route 9W Crash That Critically Injured Teens ROAD RAGE: Firefighter Gets 5-Year Prison Term For Route 9W Crash That Critically Injured Teens
Road Rage: Firefighter Gets 5-Year Prison Term For Route 9W Crash That Critically Injured Teens UPDATE: A volunteer firefighter who caused a road-rage crash that nearly killed a group of fellow Bergen County teens – and then inexplicably returned to the scene as a responder – was sentenced to a plea-bargained five years in state prison. Luke G. Stein, 19, apologized to the victims and their families, some of whom addressed the judge emotionally, during a sentencing hearing in Hackensack on Friday, June 30. Lital Aburus said she'd had nine surgeries, including cosmetic operations on her face, neck and arms, along with a broken collarbone. Ariana Grant spoke of laying in a hospital be…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Couple From PA Charged In Computer Repair Scam That Conned Victims In NJ, Elsewhere Couple From PA Charged In Computer Repair Scam That Conned Victims In NJ, Elsewhere
Couple From PA Charged In Computer Repair Scam That Conned Victims In NJ, Elsewhere A Pennsylvania man whose wife was charged with a computer scam that allowed her to siphon money out of unsuspecting victims’ accounts had a similar scheme going, Bergen County authorities announced. Kuleep Sethi, 66, was arrested by detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office on theft, conspiracy and money laundering charges earlier this week -- five months after they busted his wife, Mona, for the same thing. The Furlong, PA couple scammed victims not only in New Jersey but throughout the world, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. The thieves “created the belief that vic…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
TRAGEDY: Bergen Teen Drowns In Backyard Pool TRAGEDY: Bergen Teen Drowns In Backyard Pool
Tragedy: Bergen Teen Drowns In Backyard Pool A 17-year-old Bergen County boy drowned in a backyard pool as the 2023 Fourth of July holiday period was about to begin, authorities confirmed. The boy's father conducted CPR after finding the lifeless teen behind their Hillsdale home shortly before 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 28. A rig from the Township of Washington Volunteer Ambulance Corps was requested and the boy was transported to The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, responders said. He was pronounced dead soon after, they said. A cause is pending an investigation by the Bergen County Medical Examiner's Office. Any further information …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
HEARTLESS: 19 Catalytic Converters Swiped From Vehicles Serving Bergen Seniors, Disabled, More HEARTLESS: 19 Catalytic Converters Swiped From Vehicles Serving Bergen Seniors, Disabled, More
Heartless: 19 Catalytic Converters Swiped From Vehicles Serving Bergen Seniors, Disabled, More A pair of heartless thieves from Pennsylvania stole 19 catalytic converters from a lot off Route 17 packed with vehicles used to help seniors, the disabled and frail Bergen County residents get around, authorities said. Detectives grabbed one of them – identified as Noe Gabriel Hernandez, 24, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. The other, Juan Rosario, 25, was being sought, he said on Tuesday, June 27. The unemployed thieves swiped 17 of the devices from county-owned vehicles parked in the Division of Community Transportation lot on Essex Street in Lodi on March 20, the prosecutor …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Volunteer Responder In Bergen, Passaic Charged With Theft Volunteer Responder In Bergen, Passaic Charged With Theft
Volunteer Responder In Bergen, Passaic Charged With Theft A volunteer first responder in two counties was arrested on theft charges in Bergen, records show. Tyler M. Kotchkowski, 21, was charged last week with two counts of theft from the North Arlington Volunteer Emergency Squad, for which sources said he'd served as treasurer. An exact amount couldn't immediately be determined. Kotchkowski, a North Arlington native who moved to Clifton last summer, studied criminal justice at Bergen Community College, according to his LinkedIn profile. He'd been with NAVES since May 2021 and also a volunteer with the West Paterson Fire Co. 3 since June 2021, i…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Body Of NJ Climber Killed In Avalanche Recovered Body Of NJ Climber Killed In Avalanche Recovered
Body Of NJ Climber Killed In Avalanche Recovered The body of a 66-year-old Bergen County man killed by an avalanche last February has been recovered, officials in Washington State said. Yun Park, of Palisades Park, was among three hikers attempting to climb Colchuck Peak on Feb. 19, 2023, Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison said. A hiker found Park's body the afternoon of June 23, near the base of Colchuck Peak. Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office Helicopter Rescue Team was contacted for a hoist capable helicopter and accepted the mission. The team responded around 11:15 a.m. Friday, June 23, and the body was turned over to …

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by Michael Mashburn & Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Compulsive Child Sex Offender From Bergen Released After Serving Only 19 Months Busted Again Compulsive Child Sex Offender From Bergen Released After Serving Only 19 Months Busted Again
Compulsive Child Sex Offender From Bergen Released After Serving Only 19 Months Busted Again That didn't take long. A convicted sex offender from Bergen County who was released earlier this year after serving less than two years for exchanging nude photos with children moved into a Route 17 motel and was right back at it in no time, authorities said Friday. Frank Cirino, 69, has a history of similar behavior dating back to 2007. In one instance, Bergen County detectives said they caught him posing as a 14-year-old female online to exchange graphic photos with underage girls. Paramus police said he was viewing similar images in his car the following year while parked at the Fashion…

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by Jerry DeMarco