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Police & Fire
Maplewood Man Found Guilty Of Punching, Kicking Woman In Road-Rage Incident Maplewood Man Found Guilty Of Punching, Kicking Woman In Road-Rage Incident
Maplewood Man Found Guilty Of Punching, Kicking Woman In Road-Rage Incident A Maplewood man faces up to five years in prison after he was found guilty of beating up a woman who he felt was taking too long getting out of a car, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said Wednesday.  Jahmil Jasper, 39, was seen on surveillance video emerging from his gray Audi Dec. 8 and attacking the 51-year-old woman, who was recovering from recent surgery. Jaspar punched her twice in the head, dragged her into the street and punched her four more times while she was down. Jasper is also seen on the video kicking her twice in the head.  The woman was treated at Beth Israel …

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
Carjacker Tried To Stab Union Police Officer, Take Another's Gun: Authorities Carjacker Tried To Stab Union Police Officer, Take Another's Gun: Authorities
Carjacker Tried To Stab Union Police Officer, Take Another's Gun: Authorities Two police officers were injured when they helped thwart a carjacking attempt in Union Sunday, the police department said in a statement.  Shortly before 7 p.m., police were called to the parking lot of the Home Depot on Springfield Avenue, where a man, later identified as Marcus Perkins of Lindenwold, demanded the keys from person who was loading his vehicle. Perkins threatened the man with a broken bottle, police said.  The victim fled and Perkins ran towards Maplewood, according to police. An off-duty officer working security spotted Perkins in the parking lot of Whole Foods an…

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
Attorney: Man Charged In West Orange Meth Bust Is Innocent Attorney: Man Charged In West Orange Meth Bust Is Innocent
Attorney: Man Charged In West Orange Meth Bust Is Innocent An attorney for one of two men charged following a raid on what authorities said was a major methamphetamine production facility said his client is not guilty of the charges brought against him.  Eduardo Martinez "has maintained from the get-go that he was not involved in the production or distribution of meth," attorney Jef Henninger of Clifton said Wednesday.  Last week Essex County Sheriff's officers spearheaded a search at a home on Lorelei Road in West Orange. Authorities say they recovered methamphetamine with a street value of about $1 million, drug-production materials and…

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by Paul Milo
News
Winning $50K Lottery Ticket Sold In Maplewood Winning $50K Lottery Ticket Sold In Maplewood
Winning $50K Lottery Ticket Sold In Maplewood Someone is $50,000 richer after buying a Jersey Cash 5 ticket at a Maplewood business.  The ticket matched all five numbers in the Tuesday drawing. It was purchased at Maple Chek, 1942 Springfield Ave.  The winning numbers were: 02, 09, 16, 27 and 33 and the XTRA number was: 02. 

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
Montclair Man Awoken By Burglars At His House, Police Say Montclair Man Awoken By Burglars At His House, Police Say
Montclair Man Awoken By Burglars At His House, Police Say Two men have been charged with burglary and other offenses after they broke into a Ferncliff Terrace home Monday morning, Montclair police said.  A man at the home was asleep when he heard a loud crash around 8 a.m., authorities said. When he investigated, he found a first-floor window smashed and saw two men on his porch. The men ran when he called out, police said.  Responding officers arrested Maplewood resident Henry Smith, 28, on Stanford Place. The second man, 27-year-old Nyedair Parker of Paterson, was caught on Columbus Avenue, police said.   Both men were charg…

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by Paul Milo
Lifestyle
Fundraiser Started On Behalf Of 26-Year-Old Nanny Killed In Maplewood Fundraiser Started On Behalf Of 26-Year-Old Nanny Killed In Maplewood
Fundraiser Started On Behalf Of 26-Year-Old Nanny Killed In Maplewood Au pairs in Maplewood and South Orange have launched a fundraiser for  Karen L. Bermudez-Rodriguez, who was killed in Maplewood Saturday morning along with a member of the family she worked for.  "Karen will be remembered as a very loving person with a big heart. She was always very humble and kind, and always willing to help those in need. She enjoyed being an au pair and was grateful to have such a lovely host family. She especially cherished her time with her host family’s daughters and loved them very much. Karen had pursued the au pair program to advance her English skills and…

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested
Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested Au pairs have started a fundraiser to help with funeral expenses for Karen L. Bermudez-Rodriguez. Click here to find out more.  Authorities arrested an Elizabeth man and charged him with the murders of a Maplewood man and a live-in nanny who worked for his family, the Essex County Prosecutor's Office said.  Police responded Saturday morning to a report of an assault near Walton Road and Jefferson Avenue. Karen L. Bermudez-Rodriguez, 26, was found critically injured on the street and was pronounced dead a short time later.  David Kimowitz, 40, was found inside a home and …

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested UPDATE: Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested
Update: Suspect In Maplewood Double Killing Arrested UPDATE, 12 p.m. Aug 4: A suspect in the killings has been arrested. Click here for more.  The Essex County Prosecutor's Office is investigating after two people were found dead in Maplewood Saturday morning.  Police were called to a home in the area around 6 a.m. on a report of a woman being assaulted. Arriving officers found an injured woman in the street and she as transported to Beth Israel Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead shortly after 7 a.m.  Police also found an unresponsive man inside a home in the 400 block of Walton. He was pronounced dead at the scene.…

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by Paul Milo
Police & Fire
UPDATE: Duo In Million-Dollar Meth Bust Now Facing Federal Charges UPDATE: Duo In Million-Dollar Meth Bust Now Facing Federal Charges
Update: Duo In Million-Dollar Meth Bust Now Facing Federal Charges UPDATE, Aug. 6: The two men arrested last week have been charged in federal court. Click here for more.  Another suspect believed to be involved with a large methamphetamine operation based in a West Orange home was arrested in Maplewood, Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura said Wednesday.  Police and sheriff's officers raided the Lorelei Road home Tuesday and seized meth with a street value of about $1 million, Fontoura said. They also arrested Brian Chedahackembruch, 23, who was at the home at the time of the raid. He's accused of running a meth production facility, among…

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by Paul Milo
News
Top-Tier Lottery Scratch-Offs Sold At These 12 North Jersey Retailers Top-Tier Lottery Scratch-Offs Sold At These 12 North Jersey Retailers
Top-Tier Lottery Scratch-Offs Sold At These 12 North Jersey Retailers Several North Jersey retailers sold top-tier New Jersey Lottery scratch-off tickets. Players claimed more than $101.9 million in prizes last month. Below is a listing of the top prizes over $10,000 won for the month, sold at a dozen retailers in Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic and Essex counties. BERGEN COUNTY:  Harrington News, Harrington Park: $250,000 Crossword Quick Mart, Franklin Turnpike, Mahwah: $20,000 Crossword Xtra-Tel, Fairview: $10,000 Bonus ESSEX COUNTY: Crosstown Liquors, Newark: $100,000  Bingo Bonus Square QuickChek, Springfield Avenue, Maple…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Closter PD: Driver Of Unlocked Stolen Car In Chase Crash Tracked Down In Jersey City Closter PD: Driver Of Unlocked Stolen Car In Chase Crash Tracked Down In Jersey City
Closter PD: Driver Of Unlocked Stolen Car In Chase Crash Tracked Down In Jersey City Closter police tracked down a Jersey City man who they said fled during a stolen-car chase earlier this year. Justin Howard, 19, was charged with eluding, resisting arrest and receiving stolen property stemming from the Feb. 4 incident. Closter police were actually chasing two stolen vehicles around 3 a.m. that morning when the one that Howard was in crashed at the Alpine border, Detective Sgt. Vincent Aiello said. The occupants bailed out, ran through a large estate in Alpine and made their getaway in an unlocked car whose owner left the key fob inside, he said. Working with the Jersey C…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Woman Killed In South Orange Fire Was Once Victim Of Home Invasion Woman Killed In South Orange Fire Was Once Victim Of Home Invasion
Woman Killed In South Orange Fire Was Once Victim Of Home Invasion The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office has identified the victim in a deadly fire in South Orange early Friday. The blaze broke out at 231 Ward Place around 2:40 a.m. The fire left the three-story, single-family home heavily damaged. The victim, 48-year-old Cecelia Cranko, was found on the home’s top floor and was pronounced dead at the scene.  There were no other occupants in the home when firefighters arrived and no one else was injured, the prosecutor's office said.  Two years ago Cranko told WABC 7 News she had been attacked by a man in the Ward Place home. She was on the top…

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by Paul Milo