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Getaway Driver In 7-County North Jersey Holdup Spree Heads To Federal Prison Getaway Driver In 7-County North Jersey Holdup Spree Heads To Federal Prison
Getaway Driver In 7-County North Jersey Holdup Spree Heads To Federal Prison The wheelman in nearly two dozen gas station and convenience store armed robberies in North Jersey was sent to federal prison for at least nine years. Meshach Whagar, 31, of Newark must serve just about all of the 110-month sentence handed down in U.S. District Court in Newark on Wednesday because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. Whager admitted late last year that he drove the getaway car during the 20 predawn holdups in seven counties -- Bergen, Passaic, Hudson, Essex, Middlesex, Morris and Union -- in November and December of 2017 (see list of locations below). The gunman…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Army Vet Struck Dead By Lighting While Playing Golf In Pennsylvania Army Vet Struck Dead By Lighting While Playing Golf In Pennsylvania
Army Vet Struck Dead By Lighting While Playing Golf In Pennsylvania Severe weather has claimed the life of a Pennsylvania man, who was struck by lightning during a round of golf. Joseph Slivinski, 71, of Lackawanna County, was struck by lightning while playing golf on Friday at Pine Hills Golf Course, according to the county coroner. Slivinski was attempting to find shelter when he was fatally injured, he died at the golf course around 1:30 p.m. A South Jersey golfer was struck and killed by lightning last month. Born in Scranton, Slivinski spent 33 years his life in Peckville with his of 44 years the late Christine M. Klonoski, according to the Times-Tri…

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by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
Girl Struck, Killed By NJ Transit Train Girl Struck, Killed By NJ Transit Train
Girl Struck, Killed By NJ Transit Train A girl was struck and killed by an NJ Transit train Tuesday in North Jersey. The Morris & Essex line train was heading to Dover in Morris County from New York Penn Station when it struck the girl at 12:15 p.m. in Maplewood, NJ Transit officials said. The incident occurred just west of the station.  Morris and Essex Line rail service was temporarily suspended due to this incident. New Jersey Transit Police are on scene leading the investigation. Sources with direct knowledge of the incident told Daily Voice the girl was 14 years old.

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
$10K Reward Offered In Shooting Death Of Maplewood Soccer Player Moussa Fofana $10K Reward Offered In Shooting Death Of Maplewood Soccer Player Moussa Fofana
$10K Reward Offered In Shooting Death Of Maplewood Soccer Player Moussa Fofana The Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura’s Crime Stoppers Program is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the death of Moussa Fofana. The 18-year-old Columbia High School soccer player was shot Sunday, June 6 at Underhill Sports Complex around 9:40 p.m., according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office said.  He was pronounced dead at the scene approximately one hour later. A second male victim was treated at an area hospital for a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. More than $125,000 had …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
14 Arrested In ICE Protest At Bergen County Jail 14 Arrested In ICE Protest At Bergen County Jail
14 Arrested In ICE Protest At Bergen County Jail Fourteen protestors were arrested – one of whom was charged with assaulting an officer – during another anti-ICE demonstration at the Bergen County Jail. Those arrested were part of a group that held an overnight vigil across from the jail aimed at stopping the deportation of Marvin Jerezano Peña. Peña has been arrested by police in Red Bank and had a federal deportation hearing scheduled Tuesday in Newark, they said. Trespassing protestors prevented vehicles from entering and leaving the sally port used to shuttle inmates and detainees in and out of the lockup in Hackensack, Bergen Count…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Columbia High School Student Dead, Another Injured In Sports Field Shooting Columbia High School Student Dead, Another Injured In Sports Field Shooting
Columbia High School Student Dead, Another Injured In Sports Field Shooting An 18-year-old high school student died and another was injured in a shooting at a sports field Sunday night, authorities said. Columbia High School junior Moussa Fofana, of Maplewood, was shot at Underhill Sports Complex around 9:30 p.m., according to the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office said.  He was pronounced dead at the scene approximately one hour later. An unidentified 17-year-old victim was hospitalized for treatment of a non life-threatening gunshot wound, authorities said. Authorities remained at the scene -- approximately six blocks from Columbia High School …

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by Cecilia Levine
Obituaries
Support Surges For Family Of North Jersey Bus Driver Who Died Of COVID Support Surges For Family Of North Jersey Bus Driver Who Died Of COVID
Support Surges For Family Of North Jersey Bus Driver Who Died Of COVID Support is surging for a North Jersey family after their patriarch died of COVID-19. Marc Ulysse, 41, emigrated to the U.S. from Haiti and worked as a school bus driver in Newark up until his death in late April, a GoFundMe campaign launched by the Seth Boyden School PTA. A Maplewood resident, Ulysses was the sole provided for his wife, four children and niece. More than $28,700 had been raised for the family as of May 19. "You may have shared a laugh with Mr. Ulysse at an ice cream social at Seth Boyden or chatted with him before a parent-teacher conference," the page says. "He was a fr…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Smoke Detector Alerts 7 Maplewood Residents To House Fire Smoke Detector Alerts 7 Maplewood Residents To House Fire
Smoke Detector Alerts 7 Maplewood Residents To House Fire None of the seven residents at a Maplewood home nor were any firefighters injured in a house blaze overnight Monday, fire officials said. Working smoke detectors alerted the occupants of the home on Valley Street to a fire around 2:20 a.m. Tuesday, Maplewood fire officials said. Crews responded within minutes and were able to contain the body of the fire and then knock it down, officials said. The cause and location were unclear.

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’ Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’
Feds: Armed Fugitive In 7-Hour Hudson Hotel Standoff Was ‘Prepared For War,’ ‘Ready To Die’ UPDATE: A heavily-armed fugitive who held tactical officers at bay for nearly seven hours at a Secaucus hotel told police that he was “prepared for war” and “ready to die,” the U.S. attorney for New Jersey said Monday. ATF agents charged Rahim Harris, 42, of Maplewood, with being a convicted felon in possession of weapons and ammo, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig announced. His wife, Haneefha White, 39, of Pottsville, PA, who was with him, is charged with aiding and abetting the possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon. Authorities said they found eight loaded wea…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NJ Man Charged In Mom's Murder NJ Man Charged In Mom's Murder
NJ Man Charged In Mom's Murder A 35-year-old man was charged with the murder of his 70-year-old mother in Essex County Monday, authorities said. Gwen Avrut was found unresponsive with serious injures in her South Orange Avenue apartment in Maplewood around 1 p.m. Monday, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and Maplewood Police Chief Jimmy DeVaul said. She was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 1:40 p.m., they said.  Her son, Benjamin Avrut, also of Maplewood, has been arrested and charged with murder, authorities said. Google Maps shows the incident occurred at "The Top Condomi…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder
Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder A 35-year-old man was charged with the murder of his 70-year-old mother in Essex County Monday, authorities said. Gwen Avrut was found unresponsive with serious injures in her South Orange Avenue apartment in Maplewood around 1 p.m. Monday, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and Maplewood Police Chief Jimmy DeVaul said. She was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 1:40 p.m., they said. Her son, Benjamin Avrut, also of Maplewood, has been arrested and charged with murder, authorities said. Google Maps shows the incident occurred at "The Top Condominiums." T…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder
Maplewood Man Charged With Mom's Murder A 35-year-old man was charged with the murder of his 70-year-old mother in Essex County Monday, authorities said. Gwen Avrut was found unresponsive with serious injures in her South Orange Avenue apartment in Maplewood around 1 p.m. Monday, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and Maplewood Police Chief Jimmy DeVaul said. She was pronounced dead at the scene at approximately 1:40 p.m., they said. Her son, Benjamin Avrut, also of Maplewood, has been arrested and charged with murder, authorities said. Google Maps shows the incident occurred at "The Top Condominiums." T…

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by Cecilia Levine