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Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura

Police & Fire
'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder 'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder
'The Rabbi,' Rikers Island Inmate Charged In Eagle Rock Reservation Murder Two out-of-state men have been charged with murder after bringing a New York man from his apartment to the Eagle Rock Reservation in West Orange and shooting him dead earlier this year, authorities said. Michael Verdel, 71, of the Bronx and Posley Sulaiman, 31, of Detroit, MI, gunned down Steels on a hiking trail at the West Orange reservation March 4, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, said. Verdel, who is referred to as “the rabbi’’ by those who know him, was taken into custody in New York and has been extradited to New Jersey. He was being held on cha…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
East Orange TikToker Posted Inspiring Video Day Of His Killing East Orange TikToker Posted Inspiring Video Day Of His Killing
East Orange TikToker Posted Inspiring Video Day Of His Killing A $5,000 reward is being offered to anyone who can provide information leading to an arrest and indictment of the person responsible for killing a 55-year-old man from East Orange. Alfred Cheatham was shot and killed on Whittlesey Avenue near his home on Nov. 2, 2021, Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II, and Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura said. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:23 p.m. Cheatham was active on TikTok, where he posted a video the same day he died singing along to Marvin Sapp's "Never Would Have Made It." The bio on Cheatham's page sa…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
A Slain Police Officer Gets A Memorial On 280 In East Orange A Slain Police Officer Gets A Memorial On 280 In East Orange
A Slain Police Officer Gets A Memorial On 280 In East Orange On Sept. 17, 1984, a young patrolman with the Essex County Police Department, Daniel Smith,  pulled a driver over near the Oakwood Avenue overpass along I-280 in East Orange. What happened next was a tragic reminder that even routine police work is often dangerous: the driver pulled a gun, shooting and killing the third-generation law enforcement officer, who had joined the force just the year before.  The perpetrator was later caught and is serving a life sentence.  Now, decades later, officials gathered to unveil a memorial to Patrolman Daniel "Danny" J. Smith's sacrifice.&…

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by Paul Milo