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Prosecutor: NJ Driver Charged With Attempted Murder For Hitting Men With Dodge Durango Prosecutor: NJ Driver Charged With Attempted Murder For Hitting Men With Dodge Durango
Prosecutor: NJ Driver Charged With Attempted Murder For Hitting Men With Dodge Durango A Somerset County man was charged with attempted murder after intentionally hitting two men with his car after patronizing the same local bar in 2019, authorities said. Surveillance tapes captured a 2020 Dodge Durango registered to William D. Hoke Jr., 47, driving up and down East Main Street in Bound Brook before entering Lot 3 around 1:40 a.m. on Dec. 20, 2019, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Once inside the lot, he hit a 31-year-old Bloomfield man and 36-year-old Bound Brook with his car, propelling them more than ten feet into a parked car, Robertson said…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
NJ Mom Called 9-1-1 For Her Own Wrist Injury After Killing 4-Year-Old Son, Prosecutor Says NJ Mom Called 9-1-1 For Her Own Wrist Injury After Killing 4-Year-Old Son, Prosecutor Says
NJ Mom Called 9-1-1 For Her Own Wrist Injury After Killing 4-Year-Old Son, Prosecutor Says A New Jersey mom who called 9-1-1 for a minor wrist injury overnight was charged with murder after officers found her 4-year-old son -- who later died -- with cuts on his body in a bedroom, authorities said. Elina Gutti, 38, of South Bound Brook (Somerset County) called 9-1-1 on Feb. 6 saying she had unexplained injuries on her left wrist around 2:30 a.m., Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Her injuries required minor medical treatment, but on further assessment, officers found a 4-year-old boy with serious cuts in a first floor bedroom of the home, Robertson said al…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
NJ Dad Charged With Attempted Murder Of 2-Year-Old Daughter At Motel NJ Dad Charged With Attempted Murder Of 2-Year-Old Daughter At Motel
NJ Dad Charged With Attempted Murder Of 2-Year-Old Daughter At Motel A New Jersey dad has been charged with first degree attempted murder after surveillance tapes caught him putting his 2-year-old daughter in a plastic bag and carrying her through a New Jersey motel, authorities said. North Plainfield police responded to a Route 22 motel on reports of a baby inside of a bag around 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 23, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. There, they found a man later identified as Lamar S. Waller -- the girl's dad -- holding his child, Robertson said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W.…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Prosecutor: Passenger In Somerset Traffic Stop Had Handgun Loaded With 10 Rounds In Magazine Prosecutor: Passenger In Somerset Traffic Stop Had Handgun Loaded With 10 Rounds In Magazine
Prosecutor: Passenger In Somerset Traffic Stop Had Handgun Loaded With 10 Rounds In Magazine A routine traffic stop in Somerset County turned up a loaded handgun, authorities said Tuesday. Law enforcement officers were conducting a "quality of life" investigation on Millstone Road in Franklin Township, when they pulled over a vehicle on Spruce Street around 7:30 p.m. Jan. 8, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Donte Dowdell, a rear seat passenger in the car, was found with a 9 mm Ruger P95 in the pocket of his jacket, Robertson said alongside other top officials. The gun was loaded with 10 rounds in the magazine and one round in the chamber, Robert…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Authorities Probe New Year's Eve Hotel Shooting That Injured New Brunswick Man Authorities Probe New Year's Eve Hotel Shooting That Injured New Brunswick Man
Authorities Probe New Year's Eve Hotel Shooting That Injured New Brunswick Man A New Brunswick man was seriously injured in a hotel shooting late New Year's Eve in Somerset County, authorities said. Franklin Township police responding to reports of shots fired found a man with a gunshot wound outside of a hotel near Cedar Grove Lane around 2:30 a.m., Jan. 1, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said Tuesday. The victim, a New Brunswick resident, was taken to a nearby hospital where he underwent emergency surgery, Robertson said alongside Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor and Franklin Township Public Safety Director Quovella Spruill. The mo…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
FBI Helps Nab Pair In Deadly New Jersey Barbershop Shooting FBI Helps Nab Pair In Deadly New Jersey Barbershop Shooting
FBI Helps Nab Pair In Deadly New Jersey Barbershop Shooting Two 30-year-old men including one from Georgia were arrested with help from the FBI in a barbershop shooting that left a 34-year-old Somerset County man dead, authorities said Thursday. Todd C. Smith, of Edison, and Tayyab A. Ware, of Augusta, GA, were each charged with first-degree murder, robbery and weapon possession following the Nov. 2 killing of 34-year-old Denny Sanchez, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said in a joint release. Franklin Township police officers responded to multiple 9-1-1 calls around 8:40 p.m. for reports of a shooting at a Hamilton Street barber…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Police On Lookout For Man Who Stole Credit Cards From Locked Car At Upscale NJ Country Club Police On Lookout For Man Who Stole Credit Cards From Locked Car At Upscale NJ Country Club
Police On Lookout For Man Who Stole Credit Cards From Locked Car At Upscale NJ Country Club Authorities are seeking the public's help identifying and locating a man who broke into a locked car at a Somerset County country club and took several credit cards. Surveillance tapes captured the man -- between 18 and 28 years old -- breaking into the woman's locked car at the Cherry Valley Country Club in the Skillman Section of Montgomery Township on Nov. 24 around 3:30 p.m., Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. The suspect was described to authorities as a white or Hispanic male with brown hair that is shaved on the sides. An investigation captured the man using t…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Tech Company Manager From Branchburg Charged With Possession, Distribution Of Child Porn Tech Company Manager From Branchburg Charged With Possession, Distribution Of Child Porn
Tech Company Manager From Branchburg Charged With Possession, Distribution Of Child Porn A 55-year-old Branchburg man was arrested for possession and distribution of child pornography, authorities said. Detectives with the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit were notified of a peer-to-peer child pornography download case regrading Philip Liebergall, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Liebergall's Facebook profile says he is the business operations manager of Cisco, an American multinational technology company. On Dec. 8 at 7:15 a.m., a search warrant was executed at Liebergall's home, which turned up more than 1,000 photos …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
NJ Woman Who Pointed Gun At Construction Worker Brings SWAT Presence To Apartment Complex NJ Woman Who Pointed Gun At Construction Worker Brings SWAT Presence To Apartment Complex
NJ Woman Who Pointed Gun At Construction Worker Brings SWAT Presence To Apartment Complex A 31-year-old woman accused of pointing a gun at a construction worker outside her apartment complex was arrested after a standoff with police Thursday, authorities said. Celeste E. Jensen, of Somerville, jailed on weapons related charges pending a bail hearing, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Police were called to the Brookside Apartments on Brookside Avenue in Somerville on reports that a woman flashed a gun at construction workers doing maintenance at the complex around 4:45 p.m., Robertson said alongside other authorities. The worker pointed police to Jensen,…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
New Brunswick Man Charged With Causing OD Death Of Somerset County Woman New Brunswick Man Charged With Causing OD Death Of Somerset County Woman
New Brunswick Man Charged With Causing OD Death Of Somerset County Woman A New Brunswick man is accused of providing a woman with the cocktail of drugs including fentanyl and cocaine that killed her last January, authorities said Wednesday. Lashawn D. Boyd, 24, met up with the 37-year-old Bedminster woman for a drug deal on Jan. 19, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson, Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor and Bedminster Township Police Chief Karl Rock said. The next day, the woman died of a heart attack, Rock and Fodor said. An autopsy revealed the cause was adverse effects of cocaine, fentanyl and sertraline …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Fire That Destroyed Historic NJ Retreat For Celebrities Under Investigation Fire That Destroyed Historic NJ Retreat For Celebrities Under Investigation
Fire That Destroyed Historic NJ Retreat For Celebrities Under Investigation Authorities are investigating a fire that broke out at a historic Somerset County home once a retreat for New Jersey celebrities. Fire companies from several towns responded to 751 River Road in Hillsborough around 4 a.m. after 9-1-1 calls came in Thursday, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said.  The home -- which was being renovated -- was nothing but a pile of rubble after firefighters extinguished the two-alarm blaze. No injuries were reported. Investigators from the Somerset County Fire Investigation Unit (FIU), along with detectives from the Somerset County Prosecutor…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Driver Accused Of Drunkenly Killing Runner ID'd As Retired North Jersey Police Sergeant Driver Accused Of Drunkenly Killing Runner ID'd As Retired North Jersey Police Sergeant
Driver Accused Of Drunkenly Killing Runner ID'd As Retired North Jersey Police Sergeant A suspected DWI driver accused of killing a runner in a Somerset County crosswalk had retired from a police department in Union County last year, after 25 years on the force, his former chief confirmed. Kevin D. Betyeman, 56, of Bridgewater, was charged with driving while intoxicated, and several motor vehicle summonses following the Friday afternoon crash in Raritan, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said earlier this week. The retired Mountainside police sergeant fatally struck Celeste Andresen, 60, of San Manuel, AZ, in his Chevy pickup truck, while she was out for a run l…

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by Cecilia Levine