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Arrests Made In Fentanyl-Related Death Of Mom At Hackensack Mall, Co-Workers Rally For Daughter Arrests Made In Fentanyl-Related Death Of Mom At Hackensack Mall, Co-Workers Rally For Daughter
Arrests Made In Fentanyl-Related Death Of Mom At Hackensack Mall, Co-Workers Rally For Daughter UPDATE: Authorities vowed to find whoever sold the fentanyl-laced cocaine that killed one of five women who overdosed on it at the Shops At Riverside mall in Hackensack.  They believe they have. Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced on Friday, March 24, that two arrests were made in an ongoing investigation into what killed 29-year-old Michelle Edoo of Bergenfield, a nursing student and single mom who worked with three of the other victims at the Cheesecake Factory in the mall off westbound Route 4. Paterson residents Garfield Jones, a 48-year-old Jamaican national who works…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Mom Found Burned Dead In Vacant Lot ID'd As NJ Woman — Now Police Hope To Find Her Daughter Mom Found Burned Dead In Vacant Lot ID'd As NJ Woman — Now Police Hope To Find Her Daughter
Mom Found Burned Dead In Vacant Lot ID'd As NJ Woman — Now Police Hope To Find Her Daughter Known for 30 years as the "Girl with the Scorpion Tattoo," the unidentified victim found brutally murdered on Staten Island has been identified as a New Jersey woman — with a daughter whom authorities are hoping to find. Christine Belusko of Clifton was handcuffed, strangled, beaten and burned in a Staten Island lot, the Richmond County District Attorney’s Office said. In the weeks leading up to her killing, she had been staying at a Mount Airy Lodge near Mount Pocono, PA, authorities said. Now, investigators hope to find Belusko's daughter, Christa Nicole, who would have been two…

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by Jon Craig
News
Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot
Video Shows Paterson Non-Violence Activist Bursting From Bathroom With Knife When He's Shot Najee Seabrooks gripped two bloody knives, at least one of which he'd been cutting himself with in his bathroom, as a knot of Paterson police officers in tactical gear tried to talk him into surrendering, video released by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office on Thursday shows. Seabrooks, a respected and admired non-violence activist, was in the middle of what family members said was apparently a drug-induced mental health crisis that March 3 morning. He held two knives within view that he refused to let go of and told police that had a gun, which state Attorney General Matthew Platkin…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner?
What Does Guilty Plea By Manager Of NJ Bus Company That Endangered Children Mean For Owner? UPDATE: The prosecution of two Paterson-based school bus companies accused of risking children's safety by hiring criminals as drivers, operating unsafe buses and other violations has notched its first conviction. Will there be another? Henry Rhodes, 59, admitted in state Superior Court in Newark last week that he lied to school districts about the safety of buses and the credentials of drivers at both companies, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. The goal, authorities said, was to keep lucrative busing contracts in Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties no matter the …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
BETRAYER OF THE BADGE: NJ Officer Admits Using Authority On Duty To Pressure Women Into Sex BETRAYER OF THE BADGE: NJ Officer Admits Using Authority On Duty To Pressure Women Into Sex
Betrayer OF THE Badge: NJ Officer Admits Using Authority On Duty To Pressure Women Into Sex UPDATE: A Vernon Township police officer who was accused of groping a Bergen County woman during a domestic violence call admitted abusing his authority on duty to force women to submit to his sexual advances. Emanuel Rivera, 38, acknowledged the “imbalance of power” between him and the women he was hitting on, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Acting Sussex County Prosecutor Annmarie Taggart said in a joint statement. This left them unable to consent, he admitted, because of the “coercive, intimidating nature of such requests” coming from a uniformed police officer," the s…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
3 Paterson Officers Used 'Less Lethal Force' Before Two Shot Non-Violence Activist, AG Says 3 Paterson Officers Used 'Less Lethal Force' Before Two Shot Non-Violence Activist, AG Says
3 Paterson Officers Used 'Less Lethal Force' Before Two Shot Non-Violence Activist, AG Says UPDATE: Three Paterson police officers first employed “less lethal force” before two others shot and killed a local non-violence activist who was in the middle of a mental health crisis last week, the state’s top law enforcement official said Wednesday. Tensions were rising in the city as New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin formally identified Najee Seabrooks, who was killed during the nearly five-hour confrontation at his home last Friday, and the officers who were directly involved in a release on Wednesday. Mayor Andre Sayegh, who has been criticized by community leaders for …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Lifestyle
NJ 'American Idol' Contestant Sounds Like Two Different People NJ 'American Idol' Contestant Sounds Like Two Different People
NJ 'American Idol' Contestant Sounds Like Two Different People We Ani's speaking voice may be high and squeaky, but her singing voice is nothing short of deep and soulful.  The New Jersey native who once turned chairs on "The Voice" auditioned on Sunday night's episode of "American Idol," where judges questioned her on the science of her voice. Ani, of Paterson said she doesn't understand the contrast between her speaking and singing voices. All she knows is that she's got talent. The 23-year-old vocalist, who made it to the top three on Season 11 of "The Voice" as We McDonald, sang "Anyone" by Demi Lovato on Idol. She got a standing ovation from all…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates
Paterson Non-Violence Activist Shot Dead In Police Standoff Was Clearly In Crisis: Advocates The shooting death of a Paterson non-violence activist following a five-hour barricaded standoff with city police has a pained, shaken and angry community demanding answers. Najee Seabrooks was pronounced dead at St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson shortly after the 12:30 p.m. shooting at an apartment near the corner of Mill and Edison streets on Friday, March 3, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin confirmed. Although initial details remained sketchy, all agreed that Seabrooks was in a mental health crisis. Officers initially responded to a report of an emotionally distu…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
FINAL MOMENTS: NJ AG Releases Video Of Foot Pursuit, Arrest Of Newark Man Who Died Soon After FINAL MOMENTS: NJ AG Releases Video Of Foot Pursuit, Arrest Of Newark Man Who Died Soon After
Final Moments: NJ AG Releases Video Of Foot Pursuit, Arrest Of Newark Man Who Died Soon After It’s unsettling to watch video of a suspect you know has died. The last moments for Raul DeJesus -- who led Newark police on a foot chase before collapsing near Route 280 two months ago -- are no exception. A series of videos showing the encounter that preceded DeJesus’s death at University Hospital in Newark were released by New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin’s office on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Three of the videos come from police body cameras, one of them worn by the officer who began chasing the 43-year-old Newark native on foot after he ran. Two others graphically document the ar…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Schools
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28 These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28 The first winter storm of the season is causing a change in plans for New Jersey schools on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Some districts have delayed openings while others are closed completely. Here's a list of which school are closed or delayed for Tuesday, Feb. 28. Check your school/district's website for details. Bedminster: 10: 50 a.m. start Bellville: Delayed Bergen County Tech: Closed Bergenfield: 2-hour delay Bernards: 2-hour delay Bloomfield: Delay Bloomingdale: Closed Bogota: Delayed Butler: Closed Cliffside Park: 10 a.m. start Clifton: Delayed Closter: Delayed Cresskill: Delayed Demarest: …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
TEEN MURDER: Paterson Boy, 15, Charged With Stabbing 14-Year-Old Dead, Wounding 16-Year-Old TEEN MURDER: Paterson Boy, 15, Charged With Stabbing 14-Year-Old Dead, Wounding 16-Year-Old
Teen Murder: Paterson Boy, 15, Charged With Stabbing 14-Year-Old Dead, Wounding 16-Year-Old A 15-year-old Paterson boy was seized by police on Tuesday for stabbing and killing a 14-year-old city youth and wounding the victim’s 16-year-old companion in broad daylight last week. Delinquency complaints were signed against the boy that would equal adult criminal charges of murder, aggravated assault, and weapons possession, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes and Acting Paterson Police Chief Bert Ribeiro said. He was placed in detention pending a hearing in the Family Part of Superior Court in Paterson. The incident occurred outside but not on the property of Paterson Eastsi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Paterson Man, 62, Critical After Second Multi-Victim City Shooting In A Little Over 24 Hours Paterson Man, 62, Critical After Second Multi-Victim City Shooting In A Little Over 24 Hours
Paterson Man, 62, Critical After Second Multi-Victim City Shooting In A Little Over 24 Hours A 62-year-old Paterson man was critically wounded and a 15-year-old juvenile injured in a broad-daylight shooting, authorities said. Officers who rushed to the area after hearing gunshots found both victims near the corner of 10th Avenue and East 23rd Street shortly after 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 14, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes and Acting Paterson Police Chief Bert Ribeiro said. They were taken to St. Joseph’s University Medical Center in Paterson. Valdes and Ribeiro didn’t say whether any suspects had been arrested or identified. The shooting came fast on the heels of gun…

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by Jerry DeMarco