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Burlington County, NJ

Bucks County, PA, Man Convicted Of Killing South Jersey Teenager In Stolen Car: Prosecutor Bucks County, PA, Man Convicted Of Killing South Jersey Teenager In Stolen Car: Prosecutor
Bucks County, PA, Man Convicted Of Killing South Jersey Teenager In Stolen Car: Prosecutor A 24-year-old Bucks County, PA, man was convicted of murder for fatally shooting a teenager at a gas station in South Jersey, authorities said. Tamir Phillips of Bensalem was found guilty of murder and weapons offenses after a jury trial, according to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw. The investigation began the afternoon of August 21, 2021, when Willingboro Township police officers were called to the Phillips 66 gas station in the first block of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive for a report of a shooting. Upon arrival, they learned that the victim, 14-year-old J…
Philly Man Gets 25 Years For Motel Strangling In Burlington County Philly Man Gets 25 Years For Motel Strangling In Burlington County
Philly Man Gets 25 Years For Motel Strangling In Burlington County A Philadelphia man was sentenced to 25 years in New Jersey State Prison for killing a woman inside a Maple Shade motel, authorities said. Alexander Rivera, 27, pleaded guilty in July to aggravated manslaughter, according to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw. His sentencing was on Friday, Oct. 13. The investigation began May 11, 2022, after officers from the Maple Shade Police Department were called to the Bel-Air Motor Lodge on Route 73 for a report of an unresponsive female. Michelle Johnston, 36, who had previously lived in multiple locations in the Burlington and Ca…
Teacher From Philadelphia Charged With Sexually Touching Multiple Students: Prosecutor Teacher From Philadelphia Charged With Sexually Touching Multiple Students: Prosecutor
Teacher From Philadelphia Charged With Sexually Touching Multiple Students: Prosecutor A special education teacher at an elementary school in Burlington County has been charged with sexually touching seven students, authorities said. Vincent Root, 58, of Philadelphia, was charged with seven counts of sexual assault and seven counts of child endangerment at Chatsworth Elementary School, according to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw Root was taken into custody Thursday, Oct. 12 at the Prosecutor’s Office in Mount Holly and held in Burlington County Jail pending a detention hearing in Superior Court.  District officials said Root has been placed on admi…
Bensalem Motorcyclist Dies In South Jersey Crash With Pickup Truck Bensalem Motorcyclist Dies In South Jersey Crash With Pickup Truck
Bensalem Motorcyclist Dies In South Jersey Crash With Pickup Truck A Pennsylvania motorcyclist died in a crash on Route 72 in Burlington County, NJ Saturday, Sept. 16, authorities said. Eric Tomko, 47, of Bensalem, was heading east on Route 72 when he struck a westbound Chevrolet Silverado attempting a lefthand turn onto County Route 532 around 8:50 p.m. in Woodland Township, New Jersey State Police Sgt. Philip Curry said. Tomko was thrown from his bike, which entered the path of a Ford Escape traveling behind the Chevy, police said. Tomko and the bike both struck the Ford's front passenger side.  Tomko was pronounced dead at the scene and the crash …
LOTTERY LOSERS: South Jersey Scammer Admits Laundering $4M From Innocent Victims LOTTERY LOSERS: South Jersey Scammer Admits Laundering $4M From Innocent Victims
Lottery Losers: South Jersey Scammer Admits Laundering $4M From Innocent Victims A South Jersey man admitted laundering more than $4 million from victims who were tricked into thinking they'd won the lottery. Pablo Estrada, 26, of Florence, received the proceeds through various scams over the course of 2½ years, including one in which victims received an unexpected notification that they'd won a large sum in a lottery, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. They were required to pay fees and expenses, however, before their winnings could be released, the U.S. attorney for New Jersey said. Many fell for the scheme, Sellinger said. Estrada dumped the money into va…
Tornado Touchdowns Confirmed In These NJ, PA Towns Tornado Touchdowns Confirmed In These NJ, PA Towns
Tornado Touchdowns Confirmed In These NJ, PA Towns Two small tornados touched down in New Jersey and Pennsylvania amid thunderstorms Friday, June 16, the National Weather Service confirmed, The both were EF-0 twisters: One in Pemberton (Burlington County, NJ), and the other in West Caln Township (Chester County, PA). The Pemberton tornado's trail began in Southampton Township near Burrs Mill Road south, uprooting six trees as it traveld 3.4 miles to Ongs Hat Road, Stockton Bridge Road, and across Magnolia Road, at 12:55 p.m. in Pemberton, the NWS said. Confirmed tornado in Pemberton Township Burlington County, NJ. The image shows the p…
Philly Native Who Spent 65 Years As Beloved School Secretary Dies 11 Days After Car Accident Philly Native Who Spent 65 Years As Beloved School Secretary Dies 11 Days After Car Accident
Philly Native Who Spent 65 Years As Beloved School Secretary Dies 11 Days After Car Accident A woman who spent 65 years of her life at Lenape High School in Burlington County has died at the age of 79, 11 days after suffering a car accident. Mary Jane Mullen passed away on Sunday, May 14. She was hired as a secretary at Lenape High School in July 1961, a month after she graduated from the same high school, where she was president of the the Future Secretary’s Club. The Philadelphia native had lived in Medford for many years, according to her obituary. High School Principal Tony Cattani sent an email Sunday saying: "The Lenape Family suffered a profound loss today with the d…
NEW CHARGES: Out-Of-State Woman Held Captive For Year By NJ Man Was Raped, Grand Jury Finds NEW CHARGES: Out-Of-State Woman Held Captive For Year By NJ Man Was Raped, Grand Jury Finds
NEW Charges: Out-Of-State Woman Held Captive For Year By NJ Man Was Raped, Grand Jury Finds UPDATE: A South Jersey man repeatedly raped a woman he'd kidnapped and held hostage during a nearly year-long cross-country trip, state authorities said an ongoing investigation has found. James W. Parrillo Jr., 57, was captured and has remained jailed ever since the woman escaped from a residence in Bass Township and fled to safety at a nearby gas station three months ago, ending a terrifying year in captivity. Parillo originally was charged with first-degree kidnapping, criminal restraint, aggravated assault and strangulation, as well as hindering apprehension, obstruction and refusing to…
NJ University Junior Who Collected Child Porn Got Kids To Send Sex Vids, Authorities Charge NJ University Junior Who Collected Child Porn Got Kids To Send Sex Vids, Authorities Charge
NJ University Junior Who Collected Child Porn Got Kids To Send Sex Vids, Authorities Charge Investigators who arrested a student at Montclair State University for collecting child porn made a frightening discovery after raiding his dorm room, authorities said. The MSU junior from Burlington County had contacted underage children online using a bogus identity, then engaged them in sexually explicit chats – and even had some send him videos of them pleasuring themselves, they said. Keyon Luff, 21, of Edgewater Park, was arrested by state Division of Criminal Justice detectives assisted by Montclair State police during a raid of his on-campus dorm room last week, New Jersey Attorney …
Driver Who Deliberately Hit Fort Dix MPs With His Car Gets Three Years, No Parole Driver Who Deliberately Hit Fort Dix MPs With His Car Gets Three Years, No Parole
Driver Who Deliberately Hit Fort Dix MPs With His Car Gets Three Years, No Parole UPDATE: A Florida man who deliberately hit two Air Force military police officers at Fort Dix with his car -- dragging one of them several feet – is headed to federal prison for nearly three years. With no parole in the federal prison system, Hal Wander, 26, of Port Charlotte, will have to serve out the entire sentence. Then comes three years of supervised release. Wander sped through a designated checkpoint without stopping at the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst military base in Burlington County, NJ on Nov. 16, 2020, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. One of the officers got …
Love At First Site: Ex-NJ Couple, Nigerian Wingman Charged In $4.5M Cyberfootsies Scam Love At First Site: Ex-NJ Couple, Nigerian Wingman Charged In $4.5M Cyberfootsies Scam
Love At First Site: Ex-NJ Couple, Nigerian Wingman Charged In $4.5M Cyberfootsies Scam A former New Jersey couple and a Nigerian national scammed more than 100 lonely hearts out of $4.5 million in an elaborate online romance scheme, federal authorities charged. Martins Inalegwu, 34, of Philadelphia and Steincy Mathieu, 26, of Brooklyn cooked up the plot with Moses Chukwuebuka Alexander and several of his Nigerian brethren, an indictment returned by a federal grand jury alleges. Together, they trolled online dating and social media sites for willing marks, whom they “wooed with words of love” on the phone and in emails, U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said. T…
Abused Woman Held Captive By NJ Man During Year-Long Cross-Country Trip Escapes: Authorities Abused Woman Held Captive By NJ Man During Year-Long Cross-Country Trip Escapes: Authorities
Abused Woman Held Captive By NJ Man During Year-Long Cross-Country Trip Escapes: Authorities A South Jersey man kidnapped a woman in New Mexico, then held her hostage during a nearly year-long cross-country trip before she managed to escape, authorities said Friday. James W. Parrillo Jr., 57, may have done the same thing to other women in other states, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and State Police Supt. Colonel Patrick J. Callahan said in a joint statement on  Feb. 17. Parillo was captured after the woman escaped from a residence in Bass Township where she’d been confined and fled to a nearby gas station, they said. Authorities charged Parillo with first-deg…
Mysterious Explosion Rattles Philly Area Mysterious Explosion Rattles Philly Area
Mysterious Explosion Rattles Philly Area Bucks County residents were startled early Sunday morning by a loud boom that rattled windows and left many scratching their heads.  Members of local Facebook groups reported hearing the noisy crash just before 2 a.m. on Feb. 5.  "Anyone else just hear that loud explosion sound like literally 5 mins ago? Geez," wrote one contributor to a group for Bensalem residents. "Did anyone hear a sound like an explosion?? It happened around 1:55 am," said another commenter in a Levittown group. The sound may have been linked to exercises at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst across the river in Burlin…
$400G GoFundMe Scam: NJ Woman Serving Federal Time Gets 3-Year State Sentence $400G GoFundMe Scam: NJ Woman Serving Federal Time Gets 3-Year State Sentence
$400G GoFundMe Scam: NJ Woman Serving Federal Time Gets 3-Year State Sentence UPDATE: A woman who helped pull a notorious scam that conned 14,000 GoFundMe donors nationwide was nearly 150 miles away when a judge in South Jersey sentenced her to a plea-bargained three years in state prison on Friday, Jan. 6. Katelyn McClure, 32, of Bordentown will be released in July after completing a federal sentence at a low-security prison in Danbury, CT, for scamming well-meaning donors out of $400,000 to purportedly help a homeless veteran. At that point, the year and a day federal sentence will be deducted from her state term and a determination will be made whether she shoul…
Philly Man Made $150K In ID Theft Purchases: Police Philly Man Made $150K In ID Theft Purchases: Police
Philly Man Made $150K In ID Theft Purchases: Police Police in South Jersey have charged a Philadelphia man with making more than $150,000 in purchases using a stolen identity. On Dec. 11, 2022, Evesham Twp. Patrol Officers took a report in which the victim reported that an unknown person had used his personal and financial information to purchase several motor vehicles and various other items. An extensive follow-up investigation was conducted and a suspect, Dajuan White, was identified. White, who is currently incarcerated out of state, on unrelated charges has been charged with impersonation and identity theft, Evesham polic…
Majestic Mansion Selling For $25M In South Jersey Majestic Mansion Selling For $25M In South Jersey
Majestic Mansion Selling For $25M In South Jersey A seven-bedroom, 10-bathroom mansion is for sale on 7.7 acres of land in Burlington County. The 40,000-square-foot home in Moorestown, listed by Sothebys Real Estate, also features majestic staircases, a spacious kitchen and a bar with a billiards table. It's selling for $24.95 million. There are six fireplaces, a home theatre, a gym, an indoor pool and multiple elevators servicing four floors. There's also a wine cellar and chapel/meditation room for quiet time. The listing reads: "Artisan builders have utilized modern technology and the finest materials in developing a legacy home that …
Recovering Skinhead Talks Life As Former White Supremacist In NJ Recovering Skinhead Talks Life As Former White Supremacist In NJ
Recovering Skinhead Talks Life As Former White Supremacist In NJ A former white supremacist is coming to Burlington County to speak against hate crimes, authorities said. Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw invites the public to attend the forum on Friday, Dec. 9, where the BCPO will unveil a new initiative aimed at reducing bias and hate crimes in Burlington County. The event – dubbed “Responding to Hate with Hope” – will feature former skinhead gang member Frank Meeink as the keynote speaker, as well as Congressman Andy Kim of New Jersey’s 3rd District.  Meeink's memoir, "Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead," details his transformation,…
Accused Motel Strangler Captured In Philly Was Registered Sex Offender: Report Accused Motel Strangler Captured In Philly Was Registered Sex Offender: Report
Accused Motel Strangler Captured In Philly Was Registered Sex Offender: Report A man accused of strangling and stabbing a woman in a Burlington County motel room appears to be a registered sex offender, NJ Advance Media reports. Alexander Rivera, 26, of Merchantville and Philadelphia, was taken into custody without incident on Friday Nov. 4 by the U.S. Marshals Service New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force, on a murder charge and weapons offenses in the Bel-Air Motor Lodge killing of Michelle L. Johnson, according to the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office.  Rivera apparently served a prison sentence on child pornography distribution and ch…
US Marshals Nab Philly Man In NJ Motel Strangling, Stabbing: Prosecutor US Marshals Nab Philly Man In NJ Motel Strangling, Stabbing: Prosecutor
US Marshals Nab Philly Man In NJ Motel Strangling, Stabbing: Prosecutor A 26-year-old Philadelphia man has been arrested for strangling and stabbing a woman inside a South Jersey motel, authorities said. Alexander Rivera, of the 6300 block of Cardiff Street in the Mayfair section of the city, was taken into custody without incident at his home on Friday Nov. 4 by the U.S. Marshals Service New York/New Jersey Regional Fugitive Task Force.  An investigation began just before 11:30 a.m. on May 11, when officers from the Maple Shade Police Department were called to the Bel-Air Motor Lodge on Route 73 for a report of an unresponsive woman. Michelle L. Johnston…
Inmate Convicted In Major Child Porn Ring At NJ Federal Prison Gets Mandatory 40-Year Sentence Inmate Convicted In Major Child Porn Ring At NJ Federal Prison Gets Mandatory 40-Year Sentence
Inmate Convicted In Major Child Porn Ring At NJ Federal Prison Gets Mandatory 40-Year Sentence A convicted child-porn trafficker who was about to be paroled was sentenced to another 40 years behind bars for sharing thousands of child sex-abuse images with fellow inmates in the federal prison at Fort Dix, NJ. William H. Noble, of Lowell, MA, will have to live into his late 90s in order to see freedom again. Noble, 57, originally was imprisoned for 81 months following a guilty plea to federal child-porn trafficking charges in Boston in 2012. He was only a month from being paroled from the Federal Correctional Institution at Fort Dix in Lakehurst when he was charged by the FBI in Febru…
Burlington County Man Nabbed After Burglarizing Mercer County Home Of Nearly $20K: Police Burlington County Man Nabbed After Burglarizing Mercer County Home Of Nearly $20K: Police
Burlington County Man Nabbed After Burglarizing Mercer County Home Of Nearly $20K: Police A Burlington County man was arrested in Georgia after making off with nearly $20,000 during a home burglary in Mercer County, authorities said. Officers responding to a burglary report at a home in the Penns Neck development in West Windsor around 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 29 found that the home had been broken in through a window and burglarized of nearly $20,000 in jewelry and other valuables, local police said in a release on Wednesday, Sept. 7. A follow-up investigation found that Bobby David N. Jackson, of Lumberton, had committed the burglary and was found with a vehicle that had …
BF Of NJ Murder Victim Found Dead In PA: Police BF Of NJ Murder Victim Found Dead In PA: Police
BF Of NJ Murder Victim Found Dead In PA: Police The last person to see a New Jersey woman before she was beaten to death in her home was found dead in Pennsylvania, authorities said. Peter Lestician, 53 — a teacher at South Brunswick High School an area softball coach — had been a person of interest in the death of his girlfriend, Sheila Maguire, Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw said. Lestician's body was found Friday, Sept. 2 in the front seat of a locked car near an abandoned barn near an ATV trail in Cooper Township in Clearfield County, by two men riding four-wheelers in the area, said Bradshaw alongside …
Wildfire Burns 2,100 Acres Of NJ's Wharton State Forest Wildfire Burns 2,100 Acres Of NJ's Wharton State Forest
Wildfire Burns 2,100 Acres Of NJ's Wharton State Forest A wildfire consumed more than 2,100 acres of Wharton State Forest in South Jersey from Sunday, June 19 into Monday. Fueled by dry and breezy conditions, approximately 20 percent of the blaze had been contained as of midnight. The fire consumed parts of the park spanning Washington, Shamong, Hammonton and Mullica Townships. Road closures: ⚠️ Route 206 – from Chew Road to Stokes Road (beginning 12 a.m.) ⚠️ Route 542 – from Green Bank Road to Columbia Road Park closures: Batsto Village and all associated hiking and mountain bike trails were closed to visitors.  The Mullica Rive…
Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison
Man Who Showed Up For Sex With 'Girl,' 13, At NJ Motel Sent To Federal Prison A Bronx man was sentenced to two years in federal prison for arranging what he thought would be sex with a 13-year-old girl at a New Jersey motel. Eduardo Silva, 44, must serve the entire term because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb also sentenced him to lifetime supervised release during a hearing in federal court in Camden on Thursday, April 28. Silva used a social media app to ask the “minor” whether she was “into older guys,” U.S Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. He then “sent a series of explicit online communications and text mess…
Ex-BF Who Killed Woman At South Jersey Car Wash Nabbed In Texas: Prosecutor Ex-BF Who Killed Woman At South Jersey Car Wash Nabbed In Texas: Prosecutor
Ex-BF Who Killed Woman At South Jersey Car Wash Nabbed In Texas: Prosecutor The man accused of gunning down his 28-year-old ex-girlfriend at a self-service car wash last week in Burlington County was tracked down in Texas, authorities said. Antonio Burke, 32, has been charged with murder in the death of Cinnaminson's Alicia Stilley in the parking lot of the car wash in the first block of Filmore Street in Palmyra, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina and Palmyra Police Chief Meghan Campbell. Burke, of Palmyra, was arrested Monday, April 25 during a traffic stop in Dallas, Texas, where he will face a court appearance Tuesday. An in…
Feds: Postal Supervisor In NJ Sold 400 Vax Cards That She Printed At Work Feds: Postal Supervisor In NJ Sold 400 Vax Cards That She Printed At Work
Feds: Postal Supervisor In NJ Sold 400 Vax Cards That She Printed At Work A U.S. Postal Service supervisor from New Jersey openly sold 400 bogus COVID vaccine cards that she printed at her job -- while claiming that a graphic design degree was "paying off" for her, federal authorities charged. Lisa Hammell, 39, of the South Jersey town of Turnersville, sold the cards for from $20 to $100 after advertising them on social media, an indictment returned by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in Newark says. Two of the buyers were from New Jersey and another was a federal employee in Virginia whose mother needed the card because she worked in a hospital and had to be …
Feds: ID Thief Fraudulently Collected $140,000 In Pandemic Insurance While In Prison Feds: ID Thief Fraudulently Collected $140,000 In Pandemic Insurance While In Prison
Feds: ID Thief Fraudulently Collected $140,000 In Pandemic Insurance While In Prison People from all walks of life have fraudulently collected pandemic benefits, but Devontae Stokes took it to a different level. Stokes, a 27-year-old identity thief, was serving time at Fort Dix on an unspecified conviction when he schemed with others to collect $140,000 in COVID unemployment benefits while they were federal prisoners. That’s right. Stokes was a prisoner at the low-security Federal Correctional Institution adjacent to the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Burlington County when he and a group of co-conspirators “obtained personal identification information, including nam…
NJ Man Who Pulled $400,000 GoFundMe Scam With Homeless Vet Gets 27 Months, No Parole NJ Man Who Pulled $400,000 GoFundMe Scam With Homeless Vet Gets 27 Months, No Parole
NJ Man Who Pulled $400,000 GoFundMe Scam With Homeless Vet Gets 27 Months, No Parole UPDATE: A South Jersey man who concocted a GoFundMe scheme with his then-girlfriend that conned 14,000 donors across the country out of $400,000 to purportedly benefit a homeless veteran is headed to federal prison. Mark D’Amico, 42, formerly of Bordentown, must serve just about all of his plea-bargained 27-month sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. He also must pay restitution and undergo gambling, drug and mental-health counseling under the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman in Camden on Friday, April 1. Three years of supervision will als…
South Jersey Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Young Girl, Showed Buddy Gets 15 Years South Jersey Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Young Girl, Showed Buddy Gets 15 Years
South Jersey Man Who Filmed Sex Assaults On Young Girl, Showed Buddy Gets 15 Years A 28-year-old South Jersey man who videotaped sexual assaults of a young girl was sentenced to 15 years in State Prison, authorities announced Thursday, March 10. Cody Rodriguez must serve the entire term before becoming eligible for parole, under the sentence imposed by the Superior Court Judge Philip E. Haines. Rodriguez in September pleaded guilty to aggravated sexual assault. The investigation began in March 2021, when Rodriguez showed videos on his phone to a friend, Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina said. That person then told the victim’s parents, who contacted the Pem…
NJ Couple Charged By Feds With Making Slaves Of Illegals NJ Couple Charged By Feds With Making Slaves Of Illegals
NJ Couple Charged By Feds With Making Slaves Of Illegals A South Jersey couple forced a pair of undocumented immigrants into slavery by threatening to expose them, federal authorities charged. Bolaji Bolarinwa, 47, physically abused both victims while threatening to turn them in if they didn't comply, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger and Civil Rights Division Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in a joint statement. Bolarinwa "knew that both victims had entered the United States illegally and harbored them from detection for her own financial gain," it says. She also confiscated both of their passports and visas, the statement says. …
Speeding Driver Admits Deliberately Assaulting Military Officers In NJ Speeding Driver Admits Deliberately Assaulting Military Officers In NJ
Speeding Driver Admits Deliberately Assaulting Military Officers In NJ A Florida man who hit two Air Force military police officers with his car after blowing through a checkpoint at Fort Dix -- dragging one of them several feet -- pleaded guilty to assault in exchange for what he hopes will be leniency, federal authorities said. The officers pursued Hal Wander, 25, of Port Charlotte, after he sped through a designated checkpoint without stopping at the Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst military base in Burlington County, NJ on Nov. 16, 2020. Wander, who records show had prior arrests in Florida involving marijuana and stolen property, admitted deliberately plo…