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Five From NJ Charged With Pocketing More Than $1M From Aircraft Equipment Scam Five From NJ Charged With Pocketing More Than $1M From Aircraft Equipment Scam
Five From NJ Charged With Pocketing More Than $1M From Aircraft Equipment Scam A crew of con artists from New Jersey swindled more than $1 million from businesses nationwide that thought they were buying aircraft equipment and replacement parts, state authorities charged. For five years, the thieves cut deals online for the purported sale of specialized equipment, including airline ground support parts and hydraulic jacks, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. As soon as the payments arrived, members of the crew either made a bunch of cash withdrawals or slid the money into a Somerset County accomplice's account, Platkin said. The buyers got bup…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Weapon-Wielding Suspect Shot, Killed In Edison, State Authorities Say Weapon-Wielding Suspect Shot, Killed In Edison, State Authorities Say
Weapon-Wielding Suspect Shot, Killed In Edison, State Authorities Say UPDATE: A man wielding a "sharp-edged weapon" was shot and killed by police at an apartment complex near the Menlo Park Mall in Edison, state authorities said. Officers responding to a call at the Margate apartment complex on Judson Street encountered the suspect shortly after 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, April 12, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. "During the encounter, two officers discharged their service weapon, fatally wounding the individual," Platkin said. "A sharp-edged weapon was recovered near the decedent. "Officers and emergency medical personnel rendered f…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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US Marshal Justified In Killing Armed Fugitive In Paterson Wanted For Ex-GF's NYC Murder US Marshal Justified In Killing Armed Fugitive In Paterson Wanted For Ex-GF's NYC Murder
US Marshal Justified In Killing Armed Fugitive In Paterson Wanted For Ex-GF's NYC Murder A U.S. Marshal was justified in killing a fugitive ex-con who fired a shot at him and fellow officers in a Paterson apartment, a New Jersey grand jury has found. A loaded 9mm handgun was found near the body of Malik Canty after he was taken out by members of the U.S. Marshals Service NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force in a second-floor Hamilton Avenue apartment, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. Canty, a 36-year-old Bloods gang member, was wanted by the NYPD for the brutal beating death of his sometimes-girlfriend on a Harlem street. Canty wasn’t in the front room…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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SUICIDE BY COP: Video Shows Detective Shooting Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Apartment Complex SUICIDE BY COP: Video Shows Detective Shooting Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Apartment Complex
Suicide BY COP: Video Shows Detective Shooting Knife-Wielding Man At NJ Apartment Complex Eight videos released by authorities show the shooting of a knife-wielding man by a sheriff's detective at an apartment complex in Plainsboro last month, but one of them is particularly chilling. That's the bodycam footage recorded by the detective himself. Four other officers firing Tasers couldn't disarm an agitated Atiba Lewis, 45, as he advanced on them at the Crest at Princeton Meadows Apartment Complex off Plainsboro Road between Routes 1 and 130 on Feb. 16. The standoff ended when Lewis rushed the detective. Middlesex County sheriff's officers had gone to the complex that morning …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam
NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam A former investment adviser swindled four elderly New Jersey customers out of $529,780 that he used for gambling, meals and car payments, state authorities said. Three of the victims conned by Mario E. Rivero, Jr. were elderly siblings who had eighth-grade educations, couldn't speak or read English and had "diminished capacity," Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said on Monday, March 14. Rivero -- who'd known the siblings for more than 10 years before becoming their financial professional -- told them and others that their money "would be invested in his mother's and fr…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Exec Fired By NJ Company After Maternity Leave, Breastfeeding Request Gets $195,000 Settlement Exec Fired By NJ Company After Maternity Leave, Breastfeeding Request Gets $195,000 Settlement
Exec Fired By NJ Company After Maternity Leave, Breastfeeding Request Gets $195,000 Settlement A Hudson County company agreed to pay $195,000 to a former executive who was fired after taking maternity leave and seeking breastfeeding accommodations when she returned, state authorities said. The marketing director was on federal leave time when VCNY Home, a North Bergen-based manufacturer and importer of bedding, bath textiles and other home products, told her she couldn't take an additional 12 weeks allowed under state law to bond with and care for her newborn, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. VCNY contended that the time she was taking under the federal Fam…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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NJ Attorney General Co-Leads National Probe Into Whether TikTok Harms Kids, Teens, Young Adults NJ Attorney General Co-Leads National Probe Into Whether TikTok Harms Kids, Teens, Young Adults
NJ Attorney General Co-Leads National Probe Into Whether TikTok Harms Kids, Teens, Young Adults New Jersey law enforcers are co-leading a multi-state investigation into whether TikTok puts youngsters at physical and emotional risk, Acting Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced. The probe centers on what Platkin called techniques used by TikTok to "increase both the frequency and duration of engagement by young users – children, teenagers and young adults – and on the potential harms that may result from such engagement." It will also explore "what TikTok knows about such harms," the attorney said in announcing the endeavor on Wednesday, March 2. A coalition of attorneys genera…

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Authorities Smash Atlantic City-Based Operation That Trafficked Guns, Drugs Authorities Smash Atlantic City-Based Operation That Trafficked Guns, Drugs
Authorities Smash Atlantic City-Based Operation That Trafficked Guns, Drugs Authorities seized nine guns, 14 large-capacity ammo magazines, seven bricks of heroin and more in the takedown of a crew that they said sold large amounts of drugs and guns in and around Atlantic City. Four men were arrested following a joint investigation by local, state, county and federal law enforcers that included nearly two dozen undercover buys of heroin, fentanyl, meth and firearms, Acting Attorney New Jersey General Matthew J. Platkin announced Thursday, Feb. 24. Arrested were: Ricardo Lugo Jr., 21, of Egg Harbor Township; Jamal M. George, 26, of Mays Landing; Rashawn S. Parks, …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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NJ Correctional Officer Admits Assaulting, Breaking Wrist Of Detainee, 16, With No Cause NJ Correctional Officer Admits Assaulting, Breaking Wrist Of Detainee, 16, With No Cause
NJ Correctional Officer Admits Assaulting, Breaking Wrist Of Detainee, 16, With No Cause UPDATE: A retiring New Jersey correctional officer admitted breaking the wrist of a detainee during an unprovoked attack at a state facility for juvenile offenders, authorities said. Lt. Edward Day, 52, of Paulsboro, assaulted the 16-year-old without cause or justification at the New Jersey Juvenile Justice Commission's medium-security facility in Bordentown on Oct. 25, 2020, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. The boy had his arms handcuffed behind his back during a transfer from his room to another location at the facility when Day "grabbed the victim’s ankle from …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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CLEAN SHOOT: Passaic Sheriff's Sergeants Legally Killed Suspect Who Pulled, Pointed Gun CLEAN SHOOT: Passaic Sheriff's Sergeants Legally Killed Suspect Who Pulled, Pointed Gun
Clean Shoot: Passaic Sheriff's Sergeants Legally Killed Suspect Who Pulled, Pointed Gun A trio of Passaic County sheriff’s sergeants were justified in shooting a man who’d pulled a gun and pointed it directly at them following a foot chase in Paterson, a state grand jury has found. A gunshot detection sensor brought city police and sheriff’s officers to Park Avenue near Straight Street shortly after 1 a.m. on May 23, 2020. No victim was found, but police did recover three 9mm casings. A short time later, sheriff’s Sgts. Americo Escobar, Helman Fava and Jose Vargas spotted a large group of people gathered at Summit Street and Park Avenue. Attention there was focused on a man …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Dealer Who Produced Deadly Opioids In Basement Across From Paterson Mayor's Home Gets 10 Years Dealer Who Produced Deadly Opioids In Basement Across From Paterson Mayor's Home Gets 10 Years
Dealer Who Produced Deadly Opioids In Basement Across From Paterson Mayor's Home Gets 10 Years A dealer who produced lethal opioids in a fortified basement drug mill across the street from the mayor of Paterson's house was sentenced to 10 years in state prison, authorities said. Silk City police had seized 17,000 folds of heroin and fentanyl -- as well as packaging and distribution materials -- while arresting Rafael “Chiquito” Brito and his girlfriend, Rosanny Prado, during a March 2020 raid on their East 36th Street residence across from Mayor Andre Sayegh's home. The drugs were linked to at least 10 overdose deaths of both local and suburban buyers, authorities said at the time. …

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by Jerry DeMarco
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Officer-Involved Shooting At Apartment Complex Near Princeton Undergoes State Review Officer-Involved Shooting At Apartment Complex Near Princeton Undergoes State Review
Officer-Involved Shooting At Apartment Complex Near Princeton Undergoes State Review A knife-wielding man was shot and killed by law enforcement officers at a Plainsboro housing complex, state authorities said. The shooting occurred on Ravens Crest Drive at the Crest at Princeton Meadows Apartment Complex off Plainsboro Road between Routes 1 and 130 during what witnesses said began as the serving of an eviction notice around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16. "Law enforcement officers, including members of the Middlesex County Sheriff’s Office, were outside a residence when they encountered the decedent," Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. "During …

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by Jerry DeMarco