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Police & Fire
Police: Lookout At Lyndhurst Checkout Nails Serial Shoplifter Police: Lookout At Lyndhurst Checkout Nails Serial Shoplifter
Police: Lookout At Lyndhurst Checkout Nails Serial Shoplifter Security guards at the Shop-Rite in Lyndhurst were on the lookout for Juana Rivera. She’d visited the store each of the previous few Saturday mornings, collected hundreds of dollars’ worth of groceries and only paid for some of them, police said. It’s known as the “pass around.” When the North Arlington resident showed up again this Saturday, security called Lyndhurst police. Together, they watched her. Rivera filled a cart before heading to the self-checkout area, where she scanned $92 worth of groceries while bagging about $300 worth altogether, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. A se…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Firefighter Hospitalized In Pre-Dawn Wood-Ridge House Blaze Firefighter Hospitalized In Pre-Dawn Wood-Ridge House Blaze
Firefighter Hospitalized In Pre-Dawn Wood-Ridge House Blaze A firefighter who had difficulty breathing was hospitalized as a precaution during a pre-dawn blaze Sunday that ravaged a Wood-Ridge home. The Wood-Ridge Avenue fire came in as a second alarm around 2:30 a.m. and quickly went to a third after apparently beginning on a deck and spreading into the house. Firefighters had it knocked down within 45 minutes before it was officially placed under control shortly after 4 a.m. A house next door sustained some heat damage, responders said. Mutual aid responders either at the scene or on standby included firefighters from Carlstadt, East Rutherford…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Responders: Diagnosed Terminal, Woman Drowns Herself In Passaic River Responders: Diagnosed Terminal, Woman Drowns Herself In Passaic River
Responders: Diagnosed Terminal, Woman Drowns Herself In Passaic River A Belleville woman who'd just learned that her cancer was terminal drowned herself Tuesday in the Passaic River, authorities said. The 40-something woman said goodbye to her husband before going to a gazebo on River Road in North Arlington, responders said. She left her wallet, cellphone and car keys there, then walked into the water. North Arlington firefighters recovered her body, following a search, about 200 feet south of the gazebo, across from Fanelli Brothers Auto Body. North Arlington police also responded, along with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, the Bergen County Medica…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Residents Flee Fire In Lyndhurst Two-Family Residents Flee Fire In Lyndhurst Two-Family
Residents Flee Fire In Lyndhurst Two-Family Four residents safely fled a two-family house fire Friday morning in Lyndhurst. The blaze began in a rear basement room of the Forest Avenue home shortly after 9:30 a.m. Firefighters initially thought they have to rescue a second-floor tenant by ladder, but Police Lt. Andrew Marmorato -- who's also a firefighter, lives across the street and was home following an overnight shift -- assisted her out. A woman and two children on the first floor got out under their own steam. North Arlington and Rutherford firefighters assisted their Lyndhurst colleagues. The basement sustained heavy damage…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank
Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank UPDATE: Authorities continued trying to identify a man whose body was found Wednesday on the bank of the Passaic River behind the North Arlington firehouse. His death wasn't considered suspicious, borough police Capt. Robert J. Reilly said Thursday. A passerby spotted the body around 2 p.m. Wednesday and called police, Reilly said. The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office was notified, the Bergen County Sheriff's Bureau of Criminal Identification collected evidence and the Bergen County Medical Examiner's Office took custody of the body, he said.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank
Authorities Trying To ID Body Found Along Passaic River Bank UPDATE: Authorities continued trying to identify a man whose body was found Wednesday on the bank of the Passaic River behind the North Arlington firehouse. His death wasn't considered suspicious, borough police Capt. Robert J. Reilly said Thursday. A passerby spotted the body around 2 p.m. Wednesday and called police, Reilly said. The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office was notified, the Bergen County Sheriff's Bureau of Criminal Identification collected evidence and the Bergen County Medical Examiner's Office took custody of the body, he said.

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Police: Four Nabbed Selling Stolen Long Island Car To Online Buyer In Lyndhurst Police: Four Nabbed Selling Stolen Long Island Car To Online Buyer In Lyndhurst
Police: Four Nabbed Selling Stolen Long Island Car To Online Buyer In Lyndhurst Lyndhurst police nabbed four men -- two of whom ran -- as they tried to sell a stolen Long Island car to an online buyer in Lyndhurst, authorities said. The 2014 Mercedes had been reported stolen after the owner’s daughter left it running with the keys inside in Great River, a town in Suffolk County, they said. The owner called Lyndhurst police at 9:30 p.m. Sunday after the tracking device showed the car at The Station At Lyndhurst Apartments on Chubb Avenue. Sgt. Richard Holicki found the four standing outside the car with the prospective buyer, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. Officer…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
North Arlington Dad Shared 2,350 Child Porn Files, Authorities Charge North Arlington Dad Shared 2,350 Child Porn Files, Authorities Charge
North Arlington Dad Shared 2,350 Child Porn Files, Authorities Charge A North Arlington father of two young children trafficked 2,350 child pornography images online, authorities charged. Jonathan Mancinelli, 34, remained held Sunday in the Bergen County Jail – awaiting a first court appearance -- after detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Cyber Crimes Unit raided his Stover Avenue home on Friday. Mancinelli “used the Internet to view, download, and possess digital files depicting nude and/or sexually explicit prepubescent children, and also share approximately 2,350 such files online,” Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. The married Manci…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Obituaries
TRIBUTE: Jersey City Woodworker Joseph Curado Leaves 'Sexy Wood' As Legacy Across NJ TRIBUTE: Jersey City Woodworker Joseph Curado Leaves 'Sexy Wood' As Legacy Across NJ
Tribute: Jersey City Woodworker Joseph Curado Leaves 'Sexy Wood' As Legacy Across NJ Walk into a restaurant or bar in Jersey City and Hoboken and there will likely be a little piece of Joseph Curado inside. The beloved woodworker's legacy lives on through his "sexy wood" pieces he made special for dozens of locales and households in the area. Curado of Fairfield died died on Jan. 28 at 42 years old. Known in the region for not only his skill but his vibrance and charisma, Curado opened Tribeca Grain in Jersey City a decade ago using scraps from his family's New York City restaurant. Tribute after tribute came pouring in on social media, each one remembering Curado -- aff…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Morris Cook, 18, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Girl In North Arlington Morris Cook, 18, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Girl In North Arlington
Morris Cook, 18, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Girl In North Arlington UPDATE: An 18-year-old cook from Parsippany is accused of sexually assaulting an underage North Arlington girl. Mark W. England Ippolito was charged with sexual assault upon a teen victim more than four years younger than him and endangering sexual conduct with a minor, records show. Ippolito, who was graduated from Parsippany High School last year, was arrested on Thursday, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. He was taken to the Bergen County Jail and ordered released by a Central Judicial Processing Court judge in Hackensack the next day, the prosecutor said. New …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Respected Rutherford Lawman Becomes Bergen County Police Chiefs Association's 95th President Respected Rutherford Lawman Becomes Bergen County Police Chiefs Association's 95th President
Respected Rutherford Lawman Becomes Bergen County Police Chiefs Association's 95th President TRIBUTE: It’s a testament to Rutherford Police Chief John R. Russo’s reputation and integrity that so many friends, loved ones and colleagues packed this year’s Bergen County Police Chiefs Association installation dinner Friday night at the Venetian in Garfield. A “young, vibrant, passionate and intelligent” police department doesn’t happen by chance, retired Bergen County prosecutor’s Detective Capt. Stephen Dembowski said while formally introducing Russo to more than 400 attendees in the main ballroom. Russo, who was sworn as the association’s 95th president, “raised the bar and improved…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Lifestyle
Restaurant Owner Shuts Montclair, North Arlington Eateries Restaurant Owner Shuts Montclair, North Arlington Eateries
Restaurant Owner Shuts Montclair, North Arlington Eateries A North Jersey restaurateur is closing eateries in Montclair and North Arlington. Juan Placencia closed Somos in North Arlington and Costanera in Montclair will shutter in late February, NorthJersey.com reports. Placencia had transformed the 6,000 square foot North Arlington space into an event venue -- opening its doors in 2018.  The upcoming closing of Costanera has led to the family’s "consensus" to get out of the restaurant business. Placencia’s wife, who also helped out at the restaurants, will return to school and study cosmetology, the article says. Click here for more from N…

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by Valerie Musson