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Waldwick, NJ

Police & Fire
Wood-Ridge Man Convicted Again Of Murdering, Torching East Rutherford Grandmother Wood-Ridge Man Convicted Again Of Murdering, Torching East Rutherford Grandmother
Wood-Ridge Man Convicted Again Of Murdering, Torching East Rutherford Grandmother 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: Questionable DNA evidence found under the fingernails of a 70-year-old Bergen County woman bludgeoned and burned in her home may have gotten her killer a new trial, but it didn't change the outcome. For a second time, a jury in Hackensack convicted Daniel Rochat on Wednesday of all charges in the brutal September 2012 slaying of real estate agent Barbara Vernieri in her East Rutherford home. Rochat, 48, of Wood-Ridge was originally convicted in June 2017 of beating Vernieri, then pouring gasoline on her and around her home before setting it on fire to cover up the crime scene. Pros…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NJ Fugitive Captured In Indiana: Child Porn Charges Await 'Mountain' Man In Bergen County NJ Fugitive Captured In Indiana: Child Porn Charges Await 'Mountain' Man In Bergen County
NJ Fugitive Captured In Indiana: Child Porn Charges Await 'Mountain' Man In Bergen County A former Ridgewood resident who'd returned to his native Indiana while awaiting trial on child porn charges was zapped with a stun gun by state troopers who arrested him there on a fugitive warrant. Indiana State Police seized 70-year-old Robert "Mountain" Flynn after he tried to bolt out the back door of his current home in Anderson, IN, authorities said. The 6-foot, 190-pound fugitive apparently didn't require medical attention after resisting, authorities said. No troopers were reported injured. Flynn, who'd previously owned a sprinkler company in Waldwick and also worked as a local bo…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Disgraced NJ Judge’s Son Charged With Collecting Child Porn Disgraced NJ Judge’s Son Charged With Collecting Child Porn
Disgraced NJ Judge’s Son Charged With Collecting Child Porn BREAKING NEWS: The son of a former judge who was removed from the bench for misconduct was busted on child porn charges following a raid on the family home in Waldwick, authorities confirmed on Friday. George M. Silebi, 27, “used the Internet to view, download, and possess items depicting nude and/or sexually explicit prepubescent and pubescent children,” Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said on Jan. 18. Detectives from Musella’s Cyber Crimes Unit raided the Sheridan Avenue home of former Superior Court Judge Liliana DeAvila-Silebi exactly a week earlier. From there they traveled to N…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Business
27 NJ Boston Market Stores Issued Stop-Work Orders By Labor Department 27 NJ Boston Market Stores Issued Stop-Work Orders By Labor Department
27 NJ Boston Market Stores Issued Stop-Work Orders By Labor Department Boston Market stores across New Jersey owe its workers thousands of dollars in back wages, and the state's labor department is taking action. The NJDOL issued 27 stop-work orders to Boston Market locations throughout the state on Monday, Aug. 14 saying the rotisserie chicken franchise owes more than $600,000 in back wages to 314 employees. The investigation began after the NJDOL received a complaint from an employee at a restaurant in Hamilton last November. Since then, almost three dozen people have come forward, naming several other locations. Citations were issued for unpaid/late pa…

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
ICE Looks To Deport Laborer Charged With Decade-Long Child Sex Abuse In Bergen, At Jersey Shore ICE Looks To Deport Laborer Charged With Decade-Long Child Sex Abuse In Bergen, At Jersey Shore
ICE Looks To Deport Laborer Charged With Decade-Long Child Sex Abuse In Bergen, At Jersey Shore For more than a decade, a laborer believed to living in the U.S. illegally sexually abused a child in Bergen County and at the Jersey Shore, authorities said Monday. Federal authorities have placed a detainer on Jonan Pascasio-Erazo, a 46-year-old Salvadoran national living in Waldwick, who was jailed late last week. Pascasio-Erazo sexually assaulted the victim in Waldwick, Mahwah and Belmar multiple times, beginning in 2012, up until his arrest, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. Waldwick police notified detectives from Musella’s Special Victims Unit of the disclosure on Friday, …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Local Man Struck By Train In Lyndhurst Local Man Struck By Train In Lyndhurst
Local Man Struck By Train In Lyndhurst A 60-year-old Lyndhurst man suffered severe injuries when he was hit by a train Friday night. The westbound NJ TRANSIT Main Line train struck the man just before the Kingsland Station shortly before 5:30 p.m. Aug. 4 in what responders said wasn't an accident. The man was alert and conscious despite head trauma and severe injuries to his lower extremities. He was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center. The 500 or so passengers walked to the station from there. The Main Line No. 1221 train left Hoboken at 5:13 p.m. and was due to arrive in Waldwick at 6:11 p.m., said NJ TRANSIT Seni…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Rutgers Dining Hall Worker Saved Life Of Choking Student When No One Else Knew How Rutgers Dining Hall Worker Saved Life Of Choking Student When No One Else Knew How
Rutgers Dining Hall Worker Saved Life Of Choking Student When No One Else Knew How Melanie Buschgans was at dinner with friends at Rutgers University's Livingston Dining Hall Feb. 4 when something unusual happened: She began to choke. The Waldwick native tried washing the cucumbers down with water to no avail. Then, her friends started to panic. "We went to the front desk and they didn't know what to do," recalls Buschgans, 18. And so, Buschgans' friends began yelling out for help. Halil Bektas, who works in the beverage section in the cafeteria, heard some noise. It's not unusual for college students to be noisy, so at first, he ignored it. But then Bektas turned aroun…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Violent Fugitive From Bergen County Captured Violent Fugitive From Bergen County Captured
Violent Fugitive From Bergen County Captured A violent fugitive being sought by state authorities forced some schools in northwest Bergen County to shelter in place during a manhunt that ended in his capture early Tuesday, authorities said. Ex-con Justinian Rocco, 26, of Allendale was seized by Waldwick police shortly after 7:30 a.m. Jan. 3 after colleagues from Saddle River, Midland Park and Wyckoff -- along with a K-9 unit --  converged on the area to assist, they said. Rocco had absconded from a state facility last Thursday, Dec. 29, after spending time behind bars for a variety of convictions. Then came a call early Tuesday …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
UPDATE: Mahwah Woman Jailed For Shooting Up SUV In Former Waldwick Neighbor's Driveway UPDATE: Mahwah Woman Jailed For Shooting Up SUV In Former Waldwick Neighbor's Driveway
Update: Mahwah Woman Jailed For Shooting Up SUV In Former Waldwick Neighbor's Driveway UPDATE: A 40-year-old Mahwah woman was charged with shooting up an SUV parked in the driveway of a former neighbor in Waldwick. Megan Dzugay spent the night in jail after being seized in Mahwah by Waldwick detectives, assisted by Mahwah police and a Bergen County Regional SWAT team, Wednesday evening, Nov. 30, Waldwick Police Lt. Troy E. Seifert said. She's charged with unlawful possession of a handgun, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and criminal mischief resulting in property damage in connection with the 3:35 a.m. shooting on Grove Street in Waldwick. The 5-foot-4-inch g…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford
Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford A man was rendered unidentifiable when he was struck and killed by a commuter train in Rutherford. Police found the dismembered body after responding to the call near the intersection of Park and East Erie avenues just west of the Rutherford train station shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 17. He'd been struck by the Bergen County Line No. 1854 train, which left Waldwick at 7:35 a.m. and was due to arrive in Hoboken at 8:20 a.m., NJ TRANSIT's Jim Smith said. It apparently wasn't an accident, responders at the scene said. It was also the second violent death in roughly 14 hours in Rutherf…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Fire Ravages Mahwah Home Fire Ravages Mahwah Home
Fire Ravages Mahwah Home A raging fire ravaged a Mahwah home. The fire ignited in the attached three-car garage and raced through the nearly $1.5 million home set back off a long driveway near Young World Day School on Wyckoff Avenue shortly before 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 1. The owner quickly got out and watched in anguish as firefighters battled the three-alarm blaze. They went to an exterior operation, heavily dousing the flames with a trio of aerials in front and back before moving inside of the 4,200-square-foot home after the second-floor ceiling collapsed.  The fire was declared under control shortly aft…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Loved Ones Say Aching Goodbye To 6-Year-Old Waldwick Superhero Loved Ones Say Aching Goodbye To 6-Year-Old Waldwick Superhero
Loved Ones Say Aching Goodbye To 6-Year-Old Waldwick Superhero Cancer is its most ruthless when it snatches young innocents, steals their childhood and shatters the hearts of those who love them. It claimed another when loved ones said goodbye this week to Cole McKeon. He was all of six years old. “He will never be in pain again. He will never have to do another hospital visit,” Cole’s mom wrote. “If something makes you sad when it ends, it must have been pretty wonderful when it was happening.” It was. Cole Patrick McKeon of Waldwick was diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma four years ago. It began with a chronic stiff neck and a visit to the pedi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Tragic Death Of Bergen County Student-Athlete Staggers Community And Beyond Tragic Death Of Bergen County Student-Athlete Staggers Community And Beyond
Tragic Death Of Bergen County Student-Athlete Staggers Community And Beyond The death of a Bergen County teenager in a house fire has staggered many in the community where she was raised, as well as others from area towns and beyond. Riley Boyle, 17, of Allendale was a stellar student-athlete who maintained a 4.0 Grade Point Average, as many who spoke of her pointed out. She was, as one put it, "an incredible role model for her peers." ****** Riley's family released a statement through attorney Ronald Dario:  "Our hearts are broken as we struggle to make sense of this terrible tragedy. Our only solace is in the outpouring of love from the community that shows u…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
LOCAL TRAGEDY: Teenage Girl, Pets Killed In Bergen County House Fire LOCAL TRAGEDY: Teenage Girl, Pets Killed In Bergen County House Fire
Local Tragedy: Teenage Girl, Pets Killed In Bergen County House Fire An apparently accidental weekend fire that claimed the life of a Bergen County teenager has staggered many in the community where she was raised, as well as others from area towns and beyond. Riley Boyle, 17, was in the shower when the fire broke out close to the rear entrance of the 2½-story Bonnie Way home around 5:30 p.m. Saturday, responders said. The flames quickly spread to a rear hot tub room and a pergola-covered porch, trapping the victim in a bathroom just above the blaze, they said. The fire began in the rear of the Allendale home.Damien Danis for DAILY VOICE The Northern Hi…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
GOTCHA! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash GOTCHA! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash
Gotcha! Trio Of Broad-Daylight Car Thieves Captured In Saddle River, With Help, Following Crash Three car thieves from Newark were captured thanks to a Saddle River resident who suspected something sinister, along with force-multiplying officers from neighboring towns who responded instantly, authorities said. Car thefts not only have skyrocketed recently throughout New Jersey the past few months -- they also occur during the day now, all because of new rules that prevent police pursuits. What local law enforcement officers can rely on, however, are their colleagues and their citizens. This played out in Saddle River -- an affluent suburban town off Route 17 near the New York State b…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Repeat Child Porn Offender From Bergen Sentenced To 5 Years Repeat Child Porn Offender From Bergen Sentenced To 5 Years
Repeat Child Porn Offender From Bergen Sentenced To 5 Years A Bergen County landscaper who was caught collecting child porn for the second time in a decade was sentenced to five years in state prison. Detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Cyber Crimes Unit arrested Jakob Menzo, 33, of Waldwick on June 10, 2021. The investigators found that Menzo “used the Internet to view, download, and possess more than 600 digital files depicting nude and/or sexually explicit prepubescent and pubescent children,” Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said at the time. SEE: 10 Years After: Bergen Man Busted On Child Porn Charges Again Menzo was living in…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Hackensack PD: Jaywalking Waldwick Woman, 83, Struck By SUV Driven By Westwood Resident, 80 Hackensack PD: Jaywalking Waldwick Woman, 83, Struck By SUV Driven By Westwood Resident, 80
Hackensack PD: Jaywalking Waldwick Woman, 83, Struck By SUV Driven By Westwood Resident, 80 An 83-year-old pedestrian from Waldwick was hospitalized -- and got a ticket -- after she was struck in Hackensack by an SUV driven by an 80-year-old Westwood woman, authorities said. The victim needed ankle surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center after she was struck on Berry Street by a Ford Edge whose driver had made a left from southbound State Street at 2:17 p.m. Sunday, Police Lt. Anthony Natale said. Police issued a summons to the pedestrian for jaywalking, Natale said.

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Bergen Man Once Accused Of Flinging Feces At Neighbor's Home Arrested Again Bergen Man Once Accused Of Flinging Feces At Neighbor's Home Arrested Again
Bergen Man Once Accused Of Flinging Feces At Neighbor's Home Arrested Again A noisy steam pipe has again triggered a Ho-Ho-Kus man who once stored his own excrement and shot it at his neighbor's house, authorities said. William J. Krywos, 49, has had a history of run-ins with the law, including causing a mid-1990s blackout that affected more than 32,000 Bergen County customers. More recently, Krywos had a series of conflicts with no fewer than three different residents who've lived next door to his Duncan Road home over the years -- always in the winter, police said. The way defense attorney Frank Lucianna once explained it, "there is a pipe on his neighbor’s hous…

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by DAILY VOICE
News
FALSE ALARM: Malfunctioning Emergency System Locks Down Waldwick School, Brings SWAT Team FALSE ALARM: Malfunctioning Emergency System Locks Down Waldwick School, Brings SWAT Team
False ALARM: Malfunctioning Emergency System Locks Down Waldwick School, Brings SWAT Team This was not the day for a school lockdown alarm to malfunction. Police and school officials in Waldwick said that's what sent the school into emergency mode Friday afternoon, bringing the Bergen County Regional SWAT team and mutual aid support from neighboring towns -- while frightening some students, staff and especially parents. "The system malfunction at 3:02 p.m., right after school let out," Police Lt. Thomas Dowling said. "Officers from surrounding towns along with the swat team helped in securing the building till the malfunction was confirmed."   Police eventually gave t…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Transit Police Charge Passenger With Assaulting Conductor In Bergen Transit Police Charge Passenger With Assaulting Conductor In Bergen
Transit Police Charge Passenger With Assaulting Conductor In Bergen Authorities captured a Waldwick man wanted for assaulting a conductor at a local train station. New Jersey Transit police tracked down DeVaugn K. Dudley, 23, and took him into custody assisted by Waldwick police, said Emma Wright, NJT's senior public information officer. They charged him with aggravated assault and interfering with transportation in connection with a Nov. 23 incident at the Waldwick station, Wright said. DeVaugn K. DudleyBERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF No sooner was Dudley booked into the Bergen County Jail than a Superior Court judge in Hackensack released him Tuesday, pending…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
NJ Transit Police Nab Man Wanted For Assaulting Conductor In Bergen NJ Transit Police Nab Man Wanted For Assaulting Conductor In Bergen
NJ Transit Police Nab Man Wanted For Assaulting Conductor In Bergen Authorities captured a Waldwick man wanted for assaulting a conductor at a local train station. New Jersey Transit police tracked down DeVaugn K. Dudley, 23, and took him into custody assisted by Waldwick police, said Emma Wright, NJT's senior public information officer. They charged him with aggravated assault and interfering with transportation in connection with a Nov. 23 incident at the Waldwick station, Wright said. No sooner was Dudley booked into the Bergen County Jail than a Superior Court judge in Hackensack released him Tuesday, pending further court action, under New Jersey's 2…

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by Jerry DeMarco