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Sunday, dec 29
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North Plainfield, NJ
Police & Fire
Video Shows DUI Flying Jeep Driver Chatting With Cops In Hospital Bed After Wild NJ Wreck
Newly released bodycam footage shows the arrest of a 39-year-old man who police say was intoxicated when he blew a stop sign and sent a Jeep Wrangler airborne and onto the back deck of a New Jersey homeowner. Video shared to YouTube by Transparency Bodycam this week shows the massive police and fire response in Holmdel on Aug. 31, caused by Anthony Hernandez, of North Plainfield. “I just feel below myself,” Hernandez told officers from the hospital (around the 2-hour mark in the video). "I'm just happy you’re okay," the officer responded, saying things could've been a lot worse given the n…
Police & Fire
17 Arrested, Six Wanted In Massive NJ Fentanyl Mill, Drug-Dealing Operation: Prosecutors
Seventeen people were arrested and six more were wanted in a large drug-dealing operation throughout Monmouth County, authorities said. An eight-month investigation seized hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of drugs that were funneled from Passaic and Somerset counties, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said in a news release on Monday, June 24. "The arrests and seizures being announced today mark the end result of a herculean investigative effort involving innumerable moving parts, all seamlessly coordinated with the help of more than two dozen other law enforcement agencies,…
Police & Fire
Feds: Nine Sex, Money, Murder Members Nabbed With Fentanyl, Coke, More At Open-Air Drug Market
Nine reputed members and associates of the Sex, Money, Murder street gang were charged by Homeland Security agents in New Jersey with peddling fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine at an open-air drug market. Working with local law enforcers, agents with HSI Investigations Newark homed in on a neighborhood on West 3rd Street in Plainfield where the subset of the Bloods controlled the drug trade, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said. For months, they witnessed and recorded sales, conducted undercover buys -- some by confidential informants -- and analyzed phone records, the U.S. attorney said. …
Police & Fire
Gotcha
! Federal, State Team Seize Local Man, 24, In Rutgers Islamic Center Vandalism
UPDATE: An elite law enforcement team captured a 24-year-old local man on Monday who authorities said broke in and trashed the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University in New Brunswick earlier this month. Jacob Beacher was due for an initial afternoon appearance on federal hate crime charges in U.S. District Court in Newark on April 22. Beacher broke into the CILRU shortly after 2:30 a.m. April 10 and did an estimated $40,000 worth of damage, state and federal authorities said. It was during the Eid-al-Fitr -- the Islamic holiday commemorating the end of sunrise-to-dusk fasting during…
Police & Fire
Star Of HBO's 'Telemarketers' Pat Pespas Found Safe After Missing For Month Across NJ, PA
Patrick J. Pespas, who starred in HBO's "Telemarketers," has been found safe. Pespas, 55, of Phillipsburg, has been found safe and was home with his wife, Sue, directors Sam Lipman-Stern and Adam Bhala Lough said on Pespas' Instagram account Friday, Oct. 27. Pespas had been missing since Sept. 29, when he was seen in Easton, PA, and later at a bar in the Pittsburg area. Pespas, formerly of North Plainfield and Plainfield, NJ, has been living with his wife in Easton, PA. He teamed up with Lipman-Stern to create the three-part HBO mini docu-series "Telemarketers," which shined a …
Police & Fire
Prosecutor Details Sneaky Upskirt Tactics Utilized By NJ Sunoco Station Cashier For Months
A cashier at a Sunoco station has been arrested for taking multiple upskirt photos of women while at work over the course of nearly two years, authorities in Somerset County said. Miguel A. Melchor-Gomez, 54, of North Plainfield, who worked at the Sunoco station on Stirling Road in Watchung, filmed underneath his unsuspecting victims' clothing in one of two ways from December 2021 to Aug. 19, 2023, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald. said. Melchor-Gomez either pretended that the credit card machine malfunctioned and directed his victims to the counter where he would stand clos…
Police & Fire
NJ's Patrick J. Pespas, Star Of HBO's 'Telemarketers' Reported Missing
Patrick J. Pespas, who starred in HBO's "Telemarketers," has been missing for days, those who know him say. Pespas, 55, of Phillipsburg, was last seen in the Easton, PA area around 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, according to directors Sam Lipman-Stern and Adam Bhala Lough Pespas, formerly of North Plainfield and Plainfield, teamed up with Lipman-Stern to create the three-part HBO mini docu-series "Telemarketers," which shined a light on the truth about the telemarketing industry. It premiered in August. Bhala Lough said on Sunday, Oct. 1 Pespas may have been spotted at a bar in Pittsburgh. …
Schools
These NJ Schools Are Closed, Delayed Due To Snow Tuesday, Feb. 28
The first winter storm of the season is causing a change in plans for New Jersey schools on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Some districts have delayed openings while others are closed completely. Here's a list of which school are closed or delayed for Tuesday, Feb. 28. Check your school/district's website for details. Bedminster: 10: 50 a.m. start Bellville: Delayed Bergen County Tech: Closed Bergenfield: 2-hour delay Bernards: 2-hour delay Bloomfield: Delay Bloomingdale: Closed Bogota: Delayed Butler: Closed Cliffside Park: 10 a.m. start Clifton: Delayed Closter: Delayed Cresskill: Delayed Demarest: …
Police & Fire
NJ Man Who Sexually Assaulted 9-Year-Old Captured Trying To Board Flight: Prosecutor
A 39-year-old Somerset County man was arrested for sexually assaulting a 9-year-old girl while boarding a flight from Chicago to Utah, authorities said. The alleged victim told a detective with the prosecutor's office that she had been sexually assaulted by Fabian Osuna-Vargas on Oct. 19 in North Plainfield, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Two days later, Osuna-Vargas was getting on a flight from Chicago, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah on Oct. 21 when he was captured, McDonald said. He was charged with aggravated sex assault and child endangerment. Osuna-Varga…
Police & Fire
Child, Adult Pedestrians Seriously Hurt In Halloween Hit-Run: Police
A child and adult were hospitalized with serious injuries in a Halloween Night hit-and-run in North Plainfield, authorities said. The 7-year-old boy and 21-year-old woman were struck on Mountain Road and Jeffery Street just after 6:22 p.m., Police Capt. Alan McKay said. Both were taken to a local hospital with serious injuries, where one victim was admitted, McKay said. Witnesses described the suspect vehicle as a gold or black sedan.
Police & Fire
Murder
: Pair Charged In Fatal Jersey City Shooting
A pair of men have been charged with murder in a Jersey City shooting that left one man dead in June, authorities announced. Quadre Domnie, 21, of Jersey City, and Jekhi Wade, 19, of North Plainfield, are responsible for killing Kyle Howard, 34, of Newark, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez said. Domnie and Wade shot Howard around 11:15 p.m. on Forrest Street and MLK Drive on Sunday, June 12, Suarez said. Howard was rushed to the hospital in a private car and later died. Both were arrested without incident on Monday, July 25, 2022 near Cator and Rose avenues in Jersey City. Domnie and …
Police & Fire
Man Shot At NJ House Party
A 20-year-old New Jersey man was shot during a house party Friday, July 8, authorities said. The victim was one of the dozens of guests at a party somewhere near Arnold Avenue when authorities found him at Vermeule Park in North Plainfield suffering a gunshot wound to his upper body around 10:45 p.m., Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Officers and responding Emergency Medical Personnel tended to the shooting victim who was treated at an undisclosed area hospital for a non-life threatening gunshot wound. Authorities are attempting to determine the motive for the shootin…
Police & Fire
US Marshals Nab 3rd Suspect From NJ Murder Case In North Carolina, Prosecutor Says
A third suspect wanted in a New Jersey murder case was nabbed by US Marshals agents in North Carolina, authorities said. Jose Branch, of Plainfield, was tracked down in Raleigh in connection with the March 1 shooting death of Steve Camino in North Plainfield, Acting Prosecutor Annmarie Taggart said. He was charged with first-degree conspiracy to commit murder and extradited from North Carolina to Somerset County on Tuesday, April 19, Taggart said. Branch was jailed pending a detention hearing. Kenneth Hill, 21 of Plainfield, and Daniel Carrera-Cardona, 22, of Piscataway, wer…
News
Victims Of Deadly Edison Crash Identified
Authorities have released the names of the victims killed in an Edison crash. Ziyad Elsaedi, 21, of North Plainfield, was heading southbound in Route 1 when he struck a tree at Jeff Street around 10:15 p.m., on Feb. 6, Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone and Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan said. Meyvelin Nunez-Lopez, 19, of Plainfield — who was in the front passenger seat — died. Two other passengers were critically injured, authorities said. A GoFundMe page for her family had raised more than $1,300 as of Feb. 12. The investigation is active and continuing. Anyone…
Police & Fire
PA Trio Charged With Attempted Murder In Shooting Of NJ Motorcyclist On I-287
Three Pennsylvania men were charged in a drive-by shooting on Interstate 287 in New Jersey that injured a motorcyclist over the weekend, authorities said. Matthew Plaza, 32, of Allentown; Luis Velez, 37, of Bethlehem; and Raymond Bethancourt, 35, of Shillington have been arrested on various weapons charges while Plaza is also facing a charge of attempted murder, New Jersey State Police said. Troopers from the Somerville Station responded to Chimney Rock Road in Bridgewater, where the motorcyclist had called 911 saying another driver brandished a gun and shot him on the highway around 6:40 p…
News
NJ Releases Hate Crime Totals By Town, Race, More: Guess Which County Had The Most
Nearly 40% of all hate crimes reported in New Jersey last year were against Blacks, more than the combined total against whites, Jews, Latinos and Muslims, according to State Police crime figures released Tuesday. The town with the most reported bias incidents in 2020 was Lakewood, the figures show. More than half of all reported bias incidents in New Jersey last year involved straight harassment, as opposed to vandalism and other related crimes. More than 13% occurred at schools, parks or playgrounds. The county with the most, overall, was Monmouth. The preliminary data released Tuesday…
Police & Fire
NJ Dad Charged With Attempted Murder Of 2-Year-Old Daughter At Motel
A New Jersey dad has been charged with first degree attempted murder after surveillance tapes caught him putting his 2-year-old daughter in a plastic bag and carrying her through a New Jersey motel, authorities said. North Plainfield police responded to a Route 22 motel on reports of a baby inside of a bag around 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 23, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. There, they found a man later identified as Lamar S. Waller -- the girl's dad -- holding his child, Robertson said alongside Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W.…
Police & Fire
Citizens Detain Man, 20, Accused Of Slamming Victim With SUV In North Plainfield Dispute
Concerned citizens detained a Plainfield man who chased after a victim in his SUV and hit him, leaving him critical, during a dispute overnight in North Plainfield, authorities said Monday. Emilio J. Liranzomercedes, of Plainfield, was charged with aggravated assault, assault by auto and a disorderly persons for the underage consumption of alcohol, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said. Liranzomercedes had gotten into an argument with the 21-year-old victim when tried hitting him with his 2011 GMC Acadia on the 400 block of Somerset Street around 1:15 a.m., Rob…
Police & Fire
Former Union County School Janitor Admits Driving To NY For Sex With 13-Year-Old Girl
A former school custodian from Union County is heading to federal prison after admitting he drove to upstate New York after planning on having sex with a 13-year-old girl, federal authorities in New York said. As part of his guilty plea, Recep Sandikci, 46, of North Plainfield, said Friday he sent the girl sexually explicit images over a cell phone app in the days leading up to his drive to Albany on Aug. 6, 2019, Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon and FBI Special Agent in charge of the Albany field officer Thomas F. Relford said. Sandikci was arrested by the FBI just af…
Police & Fire
Update
: Arsonist Charged In North Plainfield Fire That Burned Through 3 Houses
A 26-year-old North Plainfield man has been charged with setting a fire that burned down three houses -- one of which was under construction. Jonathan Davies, 26, was arrested following an investigation into the early-morning Wednesday blaze, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson and Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives John W. Fodor and North Plainfield Chief of Police William Parenti said Thursday. Police and fire companies from several towns responded to the three-alarm blaze on Maple Avenue around 2:40 a.m., Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Rober…
Police & Fire
Covid-
19: NY Man Wanted In Ramapo, Mahwah Drug Thefts Coughs On Montvale Officers, Police Say
One of three people wanted for swiping $5,000 worth of allergy medicine from CVS stores in Mahwah and Ramapo claimed he had COVID-19 while repeatedly coughing on the Montvale police officers who captured them, authorities said Wednesday. He also gouged the paint on a police vehicle with his handcuffs, they said. Officer John Guico was at the CVS on Chestnut Ridge Road around 4 p.m. Tuesday when he spotted a vehicle described in an alert issued by Ramapo police shortly after a theft at one of their stores, Montvale Police Chief Joseph Sanfilippo said. Police arrested the trio, identified as…
Police & Fire
Know
Anything
? 2 Injured In Somerset County House Fire
Authorities in Somerset County are investigating a fire in North Plainfield that displaced and injured two residents -- one of who is critical but stable, police said. North Plainfield Fire Department and North Plainfield Police responded to a report of a residential fire on Grove Street shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 12, Somerset County Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson said in a joint release. Two men were injured in the three-alarm blaze and were taken to an undisclosed trauma center where one remains in critical condition, authorities said. Fire crews from Somerset (North Plainfield,…
Police & Fire
North Plainfield Woman, 29, Killed By Wrong-Way NJ Turnpike Driver, State Police Say
A 29-year-old North Plainfield woman died after a wrong-way driver on the New Jersey Turnpike hit her car head-on early Monday morning, authorities said. UPDATE: A GoFundMe campaign has been started to help with funeral expenses Kristen Leary was headed southbound in Woodbridge when she was hit by a 23-year-old State College, Pennsylvania man hit her near milepost 94.1 around 1:45 a.m., a New Jersey State Police spokesman said. The wrong-way driver was taken to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick with serious injuries, State Police said. Neither car contained pa…
Police & Fire
Prosecutor: Husband Helped Union County Woman Embezzle $100,000 From Bergen Business
A Union County woman embezzled $100,000 from a Bergen County company with her husband’s help, said authorities who busted both. Kristine Whiting, 44, of North Plainfield took business checks from her former employer and either cashed them or deposited them into bank accounts in hers or her husband’s name, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. Detectives charged Whiting and her husband, 45-year-old trucker James Whiting, with conspiracy. Kritine Whiting also was charged with money laundering. Both were released pending Oct. 23 first appearances in Central Judicial Processing Court in…
Police & Fire
Boy, 15, Charged In Fatal Shooting Of Plainfield Teen During National Night Out
A 15-year-old turned himself in Friday in connection with the shooting death of another youth in North Plainfield days earlier, authorities said. Altereek Johnson, 16, of Plainfield, was found shot to death around 7:30 p.m. in the area of Steiner Avenue, the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office said. He had been shot in the chest. North Plainfield's National Night Out activities were underway nearby at the time he was found. The activities, held nationwide, are sponsored by law enforcement and other public safety agencies. The alleged shooter was identified as Q.C. and has…
News
Clifton Man Dead In 5-Car North Plainfield Crash
A 31-year-old Clifton man died in a five-car crash in North Plainfield, authorities said. John Melo was found unresponsive after losing control of his vehicle and hitting several others in the left and center lanes of Route 22 near West End Avenue around 1:05 p.m. Monday, North Plainfield Police Chief William Parenti said. First responders administered medical aid on Melo before he was taken to Robert Wood Johnson Hospital in Somerset, where he died just before 1:50 p.m., police said. A commercial-type vehicle that fled the scene was also involved in the crash, authorities said. Othe…
Police & Fire
Man Wanted In Plainfield Killing Caught In Pennsylvania
A North Plainfield man who was identified as the chief suspect in the slaying of another man has been captured, the Union County Prosecutor's Office and Plainfield police said Wednesday. David Perez, 19, was fatally shot around 4 p.m. April 28 at West Fourth Street and Monroe Avenue. Samir Crews, 18, was arrested Tuesday morning in Bethlehem, Pa., officials said. He was captured by members of the Union County Homicide Task Force and U.S. Marshals without incident. Pending extradition to New Jersey, Crews faces charges of murder and for weapons offenses. The m…
News
North Jersey Catholic Priest Named In Massive Child Sex Abuse Report
A priest with North Jersey ties was among 300 from six Roman Catholic dioceses in Pennsylvania who sexually abused more than 1,000 children, according to a grand jury report released Tuesday. "We, the members of this grand jury, need you to hear this. We know some of you have heard some of it before. There have been other reports about child sex abuse within the Catholic Church," the document says. "But never on this scale. For many of us, those earlier stories happened someplace else, someplace away. Now we know the truth: it happened everywhere." The more than 1,300-p…
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