Fair 52°
Police & Fire
Philly Man Abducted In U-Haul After Trip To Parx Casino Weeks After Deadly NJ Incident: Reports Philly Man Abducted In U-Haul After Trip To Parx Casino Weeks After Deadly NJ Incident: Reports
Philly Man Abducted In U-Haul After Trip To Parx Casino Weeks After Deadly NJ Incident: Reports A Philadelphia was kidnapped in a U-Haul van then tied up and robbed in a basement while returning from the Parx Casino over the weekend, news reports say. The news comes just weeks after a New Jersey man was followed home from the same casino and shot dead in his driveway. The 46-year-old victim apparently saw a U-Haul van in his Adams Avenue driveway around 1 a.m. Sunday, according to 6abc and the Philadelphia Inquirer. Three masked men including at least two who were armed approached him and grabbed him while he was going inside his house, the outlet said. He was then thrown …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Clifton Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Young Victim For 6 Years Clifton Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Young Victim For 6 Years
Clifton Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Young Victim For 6 Years A Clifton man sexually assaulted a young victim over the course of six years, beginning when the child was 12, authorities charged. Corey Ervin, 44, remained held in the Passaic County Jail following his arrest Monday on charges of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, aggravated criminal contact and child endangerment, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes said. Detectives from her Special Victims Unit began investigating after being notified by the state Division of Child Protection and Permanency, Valdes said Tuesday. They interviewed multiple witnesses, as well as the youth,…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Bergen Prosecutor: Fair Lawn HS Teacher Had Sex, Shared Drugs With Student Bergen Prosecutor: Fair Lawn HS Teacher Had Sex, Shared Drugs With Student
Bergen Prosecutor: Fair Lawn HS Teacher Had Sex, Shared Drugs With Student UPDATE: A Fair Lawn High School graphic arts teacher had sex and shared drugs with a student, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said Friday. Detectives from Musella's Special Victims Unit were notified by the Institutional Abuse Investigation Unit of the New Jersey Department of Children and Family on Wednesday that Christine E. Knudsen, 44, had "engaged  in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a student at the school where she is employed," the prosecutor said. "An investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Fair Lawn Police Department revealed that Knudsen, of…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Passaic Man Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Child, 8 Passaic Man Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Child, 8
Passaic Man Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Child, 8 A 23-year-old Passaic man was accused of sexually assaulting an 8-year-old child. Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes said detectives from her Special Victims Unit began investigating after the victim’s mother contacted her office directly. They arrested Manuel Figueroa and charged him with aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and child endangerment for an incident that the child said occurred at a home in Passaic between and March of this year, she said. Figueroa remained held in the Passaic County Jail pending court action, the prosecutor said.

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Religious Instructor Charged With Sexually Assaulting Paterson Student For Years Religious Instructor Charged With Sexually Assaulting Paterson Student For Years
Religious Instructor Charged With Sexually Assaulting Paterson Student For Years A religious instructor from Paterson was charged with repeatedly sexually abusing one of his students at the youngster's home for more than seven years, then beating and threatening the child as he tried to avoid being caught. Authorities were seeking other possible victims. MD Rahman, 49, who provides in-home religious instruction to various families in Paterson, was ordered held pending trial by a Superior Court judge in Paterson on Wednesday following his arrest the week before. Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes said city police reported the alleged abuse to detectives from he…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Deliveryman From Little Ferry Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen In River Edge Deliveryman From Little Ferry Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen In River Edge
Deliveryman From Little Ferry Charged With Repeatedly Molesting Pre-Teen In River Edge A 23-year-old deliveryman from Little Ferry repeatedly molested a pre-teen at a River Edge residence, authorities charged. Roberto Carlos Mancia remained held Saturday in the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack following his arrest by county prosecutor’s detectives earlier this week, records show. Mancia is charged with second-degree sexual assault, as well as child endangerment. Investigating a tip from the state Division of Child Protection and Permanency, Special Victims Unit detectives found that Mancia “sexually assaulted th…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen
Wallington Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Elmwood Park Pre-Teen A Wallington man who was once accused of having sex with a minor was arrested again on charges of sexually assaulting a pre-teen in Elmwood Park eight years ago, authorities confirmed. Rene A. Castaneda, 43, remained held Friday in the Bergen County Jail following his arrest the day before on aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault and child endangerment charges. The unemployed Salvadoran national has an extensive criminal history in Bergen County dating back more than a decade, records show. Authorities in 2015 charged him with the statutory rape of a 14-year-old girl. How those charges…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Garfield Man, 71, Charged With Sexual Contact With Teen Garfield Man, 71, Charged With Sexual Contact With Teen
Garfield Man, 71, Charged With Sexual Contact With Teen A 71-year-old Garfield man was jailed on charges of having sexual contact with an underage minor. Authorities didn’t specify the “inappropriate sexual conduct” alleged against Mikulas “Mickey” Banacky, who Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said is married and unemployed. He did say it involved “a child under the age of sixteen in Garfield.” Banacky, a Czech immigrant who lives on Gaston Avenue, had a prior arrest on his record. He spent nearly two months in the Bergen County Jail in 2014 after being charged with simple assault and making threats, records show. This time he was charged…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Passaic Man, 58, Arrested In Texas, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Two Children Passaic Man, 58, Arrested In Texas, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Two Children
Passaic Man, 58, Arrested In Texas, Charged With Sexually Assaulting Two Children A detention hearing was planned this week for a 58-year-old Passaic man accused of sexually assaulting two children. The victims – now 13 and 15 – were sexually assaulted by Luis Castillo-Galindo at a city residence within the past year, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes said. Following an investigation by her Special Victims Unit – in which both youngsters and other witnesses were interviewed -- Castillo-Galindo was arrested in Dallas, Texas late last week, the prosecutor said. He’s charged with sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual contact and child endangerment, she said.…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Clifton Police Officer Indicted On Child Sex Assault Charges Clifton Police Officer Indicted On Child Sex Assault Charges
Clifton Police Officer Indicted On Child Sex Assault Charges Grand jurors in Paterson returned an indictment charging a Clifton police officer with several child sex abuse counts, authorities said Friday. Frank Castro-Ramirez, 40, has remained held in the Passaic County Jail ever since his June 3 arrest, records show. Special Victims Unit Assistant Passaic County Prosecutor Alyssa DiSturco secured the indictment charging him with two counts each of aggravated sexual assault, sexual assault, aggravated sexual contact and child endangerment Clifton police notified unit detectives of the allegations in late May, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NJ Landlord Faces Sex Crimes Against 7 More Tenants, Total Climbs To 20 NJ Landlord Faces Sex Crimes Against 7 More Tenants, Total Climbs To 20
NJ Landlord Faces Sex Crimes Against 7 More Tenants, Total Climbs To 20 A New Jersey landlord federally accused of demanding sexual favors from tenants in exchange for rent relief is facing additional charges against seven new alleged victims, bringing the total to 20, authorities said Thursday. Joseph Centanni was charged with five additional counts of second-degree sexual assault and seven additional counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, Acting Union County Prosecutor Lyndsay V. Ruotolo and Elizabeth Police Department Chief Giacomo Sacca and Director Earl Graves said. The 74-year-old Mountainside resident -- who owns hundreds of residential rental …

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by Cecilia Levine
News
Hudson Music Teacher Charged With Fondling Lyndhurst Student, 12, During Private Lessons Hudson Music Teacher Charged With Fondling Lyndhurst Student, 12, During Private Lessons
Hudson Music Teacher Charged With Fondling Lyndhurst Student, 12, During Private Lessons A 67-year-old music teacher from Kearny fondled a 12-year-old Lyndhurst girl during private lessons, authorities charged. Fernando Valadares remained held Wednesday in the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Hackensack. Bergen County prosecutor’s detectives had arrested Valadares at his Belgrove Drove home the night before. The Special Victims Unit detectives joined the investigation after township police were told that Valadares “engaged in the conduct on multiple occasions while instructing the child in music lessons” in Lyndhurst, Bergen…

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by Jerry DeMarco