Tag:

Guilty Plea

Gunman Admits To 'Execution-Style' Murder Of 32-Year-Old Outside Mastic Beach Business Gunman Admits To 'Execution-Style' Murder Of 32-Year-Old Outside Mastic Beach Business
Gunman Admits To 'Execution-Style' Murder Of 32-Year-Old Outside Mastic Beach Business An accused gunman formally confessed to shooting a man to death outside a Long Island business. Joseph Scalafani, age 34, of Mastic Beach, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in Suffolk County Court on Tuesday, Nov. 12, in the death of Alex Smith. Prosecutors said Scalafani ambushed the 32-year-old Smith and the man’s girlfriend as they exited a Mastic Beach bar on Neighborhood Road, at around 2 a.m. on May 20, 2023. Earlier Report: Wanted: Suspect ID'd In Fatal Shooting Of 30-Year-Old Long Island Man He fired numerous shots at Smith, striking him multiple times in his back and …
Trio Pleads Guilty To Killing Teen During Burlington Drug Deal, Prosecutors Say Trio Pleads Guilty To Killing Teen During Burlington Drug Deal, Prosecutors Say
Trio Pleads Guilty To Killing Teen During Burlington Drug Deal, Prosecutors Say Three men admitted to shooting a teen to death during a drug deal in Burlington Township more than three years ago, authorities said. Jayviyohn Earley of Willingboro, Tarik Jenkins of Pemberton Township, and Kayhree Simmons of Willingboro pleaded guilty on Tuesday, Oct. 29 to aggravated manslaughter, Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia Bradshaw said in a news release.  Investigators said the men went to the Walmart parking lot on Route 541 for a drug deal on Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021. The three confessed to firing guns, killing 17-year-old Albert Williams of Hammo…
Naked Man With Gun At Atlantic City Apartment Pleads Guilty, Prosecutors Say Naked Man With Gun At Atlantic City Apartment Pleads Guilty, Prosecutors Say
Naked Man With Gun At Atlantic City Apartment Pleads Guilty, Prosecutors Say A Glassboro man admitted to having a gun when he was found naked at a downtown Atlantic City apartment building, authorities said. Forrest Graves, 36, pleaded guilty on Friday, Oct. 25 to second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said in a news release. Atlantic City police responded to the Best of Life Park Apartments on South Virginia Avenue at around 12:10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17. The building is near Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City. Police received a report of a man taking off his clothes and refusing to leave the property…
Lambertville Campaign Manager Gets Probation For Filing Phony Petitions In Gov Primary: AG Lambertville Campaign Manager Gets Probation For Filing Phony Petitions In Gov Primary: AG
Lambertville Campaign Manager Gets Probation For Filing Phony Petitions In Gov Primary: AG A 62-year-old Hunterdon County campaign manager was sentenced to two years of probation on Friday, Oct. 18 after pleading guilty to attempting to fraudulently place a candidate on the Democratic primary ballot in the New Jersey governor’s race in 2021, authorities said. James Devine, a Lambertville resident, submitted 1,948 fraudulent nominating petitions to the New Jersey Department of State’s Division of Elections, in an attempt to enable his candidate, Lisa McCormick, to compete in the primary, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. Devine pleaded guilty in August. “Rather than…
Lindenwold Man Admits To Pistol-Whippings In Three Philly Corner Store Robberies, Feds Say Lindenwold Man Admits To Pistol-Whippings In Three Philly Corner Store Robberies, Feds Say
Lindenwold Man Admits To Pistol-Whippings In Three Philly Corner Store Robberies, Feds Say A Lindenwold man admitted to committing violent robberies at three corner stores in Philadelphia, authorities said. Jared Stanley, 32, pleaded guilty on Friday, Oct. 11 to three counts of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of carrying, using, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Jacqueline Romero announced the guilty plea in a news release on Tuesday, Oct. 15. Prosecutors said Stanley committed three robberies over about two weeks in the city's Kensington section in January and Februa…
Ronkonkoma Man Admits To Double-Fatal Shooting At Selden Residence Ronkonkoma Man Admits To Double-Fatal Shooting At Selden Residence
Ronkonkoma Man Admits To Double-Fatal Shooting At Selden Residence A Long Island man is facing decades in prison after admitting to fatally shooting two people inside a home. Brian Cordovano, age 50, of Ronkonkoma and formerly of Bay Shore, was arrested following a traffic stop in Smithtown, on Columbus Avenue, just before noontime on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023. On Tuesday, May 3, 2022 at around 10:45 p.m. in Selden at 55 Hollywood Ave., Ian Saalfield, age 45, of Lake Grove, who had been reported missing by his wife nearly two weeks earlier, and the homeowner, Robert Julian, age 58, were found shot to death, Suffolk County Police said. Cordovano w…
Red Bank Plumber Admits To Taking Upskirt Videos Of 27 Girls, Women: Prosecutors Red Bank Plumber Admits To Taking Upskirt Videos Of 27 Girls, Women: Prosecutors
Red Bank Plumber Admits To Taking Upskirt Videos Of 27 Girls, Women: Prosecutors A Red Bank man admitted to recording upskirt videos of more than two dozen women and girls, including some in their homes, authorities said. Christopher Cox, 35, pleaded guilty on Friday, Oct. 4 to second-degree eluding police, two counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, and three counts of third-degree invasion of privacy. Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced the guilty plea in a news release on Tuesday, Oct. 8. Investigators said Cox entered the ShopRite supermarket in Shrewsbury just before 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2022, and began follow…
Ousted Nassau Rep. George Santos  Likely To Face Prison After Pleading Guilty In Fraud Case Ousted Nassau Rep. George Santos  Likely To Face Prison After Pleading Guilty In Fraud Case
Ousted Nassau Rep. George Santos Likely To Face Prison After Pleading Guilty In Fraud Case Former Republican Congressman George Santos admitted to committing wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in a federal court on Monday, Aug. 19, authorities announced.  The 36-year-old former inhabitant of New York's 3rd Congressional District seat on Long Island was facing 23 felonies, and a trial set to begin next month.  A federal judge will sentence Santos on Friday, Feb. 7, 2025, the US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York said. According to federal sentencing guidelines, aggravated identity theft carries a mandatory two-year minimum sentence.&n…
Ex-Deputy Mayor Of Newark Admits Taking $25K Bribe In Restaurant Bathroom: Feds Ex-Deputy Mayor Of Newark Admits Taking $25K Bribe In Restaurant Bathroom: Feds
Ex-Deputy Mayor Of Newark Admits Taking $25K Bribe In Restaurant Bathroom: Feds Carmelo Garcia, who previously served as deputy mayor of Newark and one term in the state General Assembly, admitted to taking $25,000 in bribes, federal authorities said.  Garcia, 49, pleaded guilty to conspiring with two Newark business owners to obtain corrupt payments intended to influence and reward him for assisting them with the acquisition and redevelopment of various city-owned properties while serving on the Newark Department Economic and Housing Development, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said. Between 2017 and 2019, Garcia sought and received significant mone…
Suspect Admits To Holiday Parade Shootout In Frederick: Montgomery County State's Attorney Suspect Admits To Holiday Parade Shootout In Frederick: Montgomery County State's Attorney
Suspect Admits To Holiday Parade Shootout In Frederick: Montgomery County State's Attorney A Frederick man has admitted to attempted murder and a weapons charge for his role in thea shootout with another man during a holiday parade in 2022, the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office announced. David Gray, 33, is facing up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced in August after pleading guilty to participating in a shootout in downtown Frederick in December 2022 with Atu Adeyemi, 51, during the city's Kris Kringle parade. According to court documents, on Dec. 9, 2022, officers heard shots fired in the area of South Market Street and All Saints Street, which led to a short …
Man Admits To Role In Maryland Shooting Incident Over Stolen Medication Debt: State's Attorney Man Admits To Role In Maryland Shooting Incident Over Stolen Medication Debt: State's Attorney
Man Admits To Role In Maryland Shooting Incident Over Stolen Medication Debt: State's Attorney A Calvert County man implicated to a shooting at an area home during a dispute over allegedly stolen medication copped to the crime and will face decades in prison. Chesapeake Bach resident Stephen Louis Betz pleaded guilty this week to first-degree assault and reckless endangerment stemming from an incident that was reported in Owings last fall, authorities announced on Tuesday. On Sept. 10, 2023, Betz and two other unidentified men broke into the home and confronted them about alleged stolen medication. An argument broke out, and one of the men pulled out a weapon. The dispute then …
Pair Who Peddled Fentanyl To Undercover DEA Agents In DMV Face Federal Prison Time: DOJ Pair Who Peddled Fentanyl To Undercover DEA Agents In DMV Face Federal Prison Time: DOJ
Pair Who Peddled Fentanyl To Undercover DEA Agents In DMV Face Federal Prison Time: DOJ A dubious duo is facing prison time after admitting to selling fentanyl pills to undercover DEA agents in Washington, DC and Maryland, authorities announced. Beltsville resident Edward Steven Monge, 22, and 26-year-old Jennifer Echeverria Flores, of Silver Spring, have both pleaded guilty for their roles in a fentanyl distribution ring, officials say. According to prosecutors, between February and August last year, Monge sold more than 4,500 pills containing fentanyl to Echeverria Flores, who then sold those pills to an undercover DEA agent on five separate occasions in the DMV re…
NJ Man Heads To Prison For Deadly Botched Robbery In PA NJ Man Heads To Prison For Deadly Botched Robbery In PA
NJ Man Heads To Prison For Deadly Botched Robbery In PA A New Jersey man will spend up to 55 years in a Pennsylvania prison for a murder he and his brother committed during a 2021 robbery, officials say.  Anthony Joel Gamble, 22, previously pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and conspiracy to commit robbery in October, said the Bucks County District Attorney's Office.  Gamble and his younger brother Joshua David Gamble stabbed 26-year-old Kevin Rosero nearly 30 times before trying to dump his body in a wooded area in Richland Township late on June 17, 2021, prosecutors have claimed.  They were arrested that night whe…
Ring Member Admits Snatching $1.5M Worth Of High-End Vehicles In NJ, Rockland, CT, Long Island Ring Member Admits Snatching $1.5M Worth Of High-End Vehicles In NJ, Rockland, CT, Long Island
Ring Member Admits Snatching $1.5M Worth Of High-End Vehicles In NJ, Rockland, CT, Long Island The last of four men caught stealing more than $1.5 million worth of luxury cars in New Jersey, Rockland County, Long Island and Connecticut took a guilty plea on Thursday, federal authorities announced. Like his pals, Malik Baker, 29, of Vauxhall, NJ, took a deal from the government, pleading guilty in federal court in Newark on Oct. 19 to conspiring to transport stolen vehicles in interstate commerce and receiving a stolen vehicle that had crossed state lines after being stolen. U.S. District Judge Esther Salas scheduled Baker's sentencing for March 7, 2024. Baker had remained on the sid…
District Man Admits To Sexually Abusing Girl 'Regularly' For Years: Feds District Man Admits To Sexually Abusing Girl 'Regularly' For Years: Feds
District Man Admits To Sexually Abusing Girl 'Regularly' For Years: Feds A 66-year-old District man admitted to sexually abusing a young girl over the course of nearly a decade, federal authorities announced. Tyrone Wiggins pleaded guilty on Friday to second-degree child abuse after he regularly engaged in sexual acts with a minor starting when she was 10 years old and continuing until she was 18.  According to his plea agreement, between May 1999 and October 1999, when the girl was 13 years old and he was 42, Wiggins sexually abused her on multiple occasions. He further admitted that he abused her when she was 10 and continued to do so through her teenage …
3rd Member Of 'Hit List' Burglary Crew That Targeted Asian Homeowners In NJ, NY, PA, Cops Plea 3rd Member Of 'Hit List' Burglary Crew That Targeted Asian Homeowners In NJ, NY, PA, Cops Plea
3rd Member Of 'Hit List' Burglary Crew That Targeted Asian Homeowners In NJ, NY, PA, Cops Plea UPDATE: A third member of a burglary ring that targeted Asian-American small business owners in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware has pleaded guilty, authorities confirmed. Kevin Jackson, 57, of Rahway, was part of a second-story crew that the FBI said worked from a hit list of dozens of homes in four states based on “stereotype and opportunity." One of Jackson's associates told detectives that Asians were targeted “because it was believed that the victims kept large sums of currency and jewelry in their residences,” an FBI complaint says. Notes found in the defendants’ cars …
Two Admit To Firing 28 Rounds At Murder Victim Outside DC Church: Feds Two Admit To Firing 28 Rounds At Murder Victim Outside DC Church: Feds
Two Admit To Firing 28 Rounds At Murder Victim Outside DC Church: Feds Two men have admitted to their roles in separate homicide cases that have been under investigation for years. Joseph Brown, 33, pleaded guilty on Monday to second-degree murder while armed, while Rondell McLeod - already behind bars for a different case - pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter while armed in connection to the death of 21-year-old Amari Jenkins, federal authorities announced on Monday. The fatal shooting was reported on Aug. 18, 2015, in front of St. Luke's Catholic Church on East Capitol Street NE. The Washington, DC residents admitted that on the day of Jenkins' death, …
PA TikToker Who Admitted To Killing Her Wheelchair Bound Sister Learns Her Fate: DA PA TikToker Who Admitted To Killing Her Wheelchair Bound Sister Learns Her Fate: DA
PA TikToker Who Admitted To Killing Her Wheelchair Bound Sister Learns Her Fate: DA "Incoherently tragic," events led a TikToking teen to "Michael Myer's" (as the killer put it) her sister who had Cerebral Palsy, authorities say. Over two years later, the now 16-year-old Claire Miller has learned her fate, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's office.  The Manheim Township girl "pleaded guilty but mentally ill to a charge of third-degree murder Friday afternoon in Lancaster County Court regarding the stabbing of her sister (Helen, 19) on Feb. 22, 2021," the DA stated in the release on Friday, March 10, 2023. The stabbing happened while the girls' parents w…
NJ Dealer Awaiting Trial For Shooting Detectives Gets 13 Years In Federal Drug Takedown NJ Dealer Awaiting Trial For Shooting Detectives Gets 13 Years In Federal Drug Takedown
NJ Dealer Awaiting Trial For Shooting Detectives Gets 13 Years In Federal Drug Takedown A manager of a major New Jersey drug ring who's awaiting trial for shooting two undercover detectives must spend 13 years in federal custody after taking a plea deal from the government in a separate case. Juan Figueroa, 25, was the last of 19 members of the Bloods-related group who were convicted following a federal assault on an open-air drug market in Camden that provided walkup and drive-by service to its customers. Figueroa and two associates were also charged in state court with ambushing two Camden County Police detectives who were investigating the ring, which peddled heroin, crack,…
Suitland Stabbing Suspect Sentenced For Butchering Victim After Southeast DC Crash: Feds Suitland Stabbing Suspect Sentenced For Butchering Victim After Southeast DC Crash: Feds
Suitland Stabbing Suspect Sentenced For Butchering Victim After Southeast DC Crash: Feds A Maryland man has been sentenced to more than two decades in prison for butchering a friend to death in Southeast Washington, DC, federal prosecutors announced. Suitland resident Herbert Smallwood, 42, has been sentenced to 275 months in prison for the murder of Joseph Ogundoju after following his far for several blocks in June 2021. Prosecutors said that at approximately 7 p.m. on June 30, 2021, Smallwood was traveling in an SUV that was following another vehicle being driven by an acquaintance. The other vehicle, a Ford Focus, crashed during the incident and flipped in the rear of the …
Federal Fort Lee Fentanyl Bust: Manhattan Man, 64, Could Get 10 Years Without Parole Federal Fort Lee Fentanyl Bust: Manhattan Man, 64, Could Get 10 Years Without Parole
Federal Fort Lee Fentanyl Bust: Manhattan Man, 64, Could Get 10 Years Without Parole A 64-year-old Manhattan man busted by federal Homeland Security agents for dealing nearly a pound of a drug mixture that contained fentanyl in Fort Lee took a guilty plea Tuesday rather than risk the outcome of a trial. U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo scheduled sentencing for June 21 after Jose Migel Cleto pleaded guilty in Newark on Jan. 31 to distribution and possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. Cleto could still get 10 years, which has become a federal mandatory minimum for fentanyl trafficking -- a crime that prosecutors and j…
NJ Army Vet Who Supported Syrian Terrorist Lover Gets 3 Plea-Bargained Years In Federal Prison NJ Army Vet Who Supported Syrian Terrorist Lover Gets 3 Plea-Bargained Years In Federal Prison
NJ Army Vet Who Supported Syrian Terrorist Lover Gets 3 Plea-Bargained Years In Federal Prison A U.S. Army veteran from Sussex County must spend more than three years in federal prison for deliberately concealing money and guidance she gave to a Syrian terrorist she'd fallen in love with. Because there's no parole in the federal prison system, Maria Bell, 55, must serve out just about all of the plea-bargained 36-month sentence approved by a federal judge in Newark on Tuesday, Jan. 24, Bell, of Hopatcong, offered not only money and military intelligence but the benefit of her experience in specialized weapons training to Syria-based factions fighting the Assad regime, a complaint on…
Pleasantville Man Admits Having Ghost Gun In Exchange For 3-Year Prison Term: Prosecutor Pleasantville Man Admits Having Ghost Gun In Exchange For 3-Year Prison Term: Prosecutor
Pleasantville Man Admits Having Ghost Gun In Exchange For 3-Year Prison Term: Prosecutor A 19-year-old Pleasantville man faces three years in New Jersey state Prison in exchange for his guilty plea on a weapons charge, authorities said. Jonathan Valentine, 19, of Pleasantville was charged with the unlawful possession of a handgun, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office.  As part of the plea agreement, the defendant must also consent to forfeit the handgun, extended ammunition magazine, and cash seized. Sentencing will be on Feb. 28. On June 17, 2022, Pleasantville Police conducted a traffic stop at the intersection of Doughty Road and West Ba…
Man Who Murdered Lancaster Dad Learns His Fate, DA Say Man Who Murdered Lancaster Dad Learns His Fate, DA Say
Man Who Murdered Lancaster Dad Learns His Fate, DA Say A confessed killer is heading to prison, according to a release by the Lancaster County district attorney's office on Friday, January 13, 2023.  Police were dispatched for a report of a stabbing at 505 Pearl Street on Sept. 1, 2021, just before 7 a.m. The officers arrived to find Brandon Schweers, 36, of the 500 block of Pearl Street in Lancaster, with visible injuries to his head and knee, as well as having difficulty breathing. Prior to being taken to the hospital, Schweers told the officers that Aaron Robertson was the person who attacked with a knife and pepper spray. During t…
Strip Club Assault Suspect Admits Role In Attack Before Man Died In South Jersey: Prosecutor Strip Club Assault Suspect Admits Role In Attack Before Man Died In South Jersey: Prosecutor
Strip Club Assault Suspect Admits Role In Attack Before Man Died In South Jersey: Prosecutor Jamaul Timberlake, 31, of Atlantic City, one of three men accused of assaulting Irving Mayren-Guzman in Pleasantville outside Centerfolds Cabaret last January has pleaded guilty, authorities said. Mayren-Guzman, 19, was assaulted by three men after being escorted out of the club by bouncers. Timberlake, along with brothers Garnell and John Hands, are shown on video assaulting the teen after an altercation outside the strip club, according to the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office.  Timberlake admitted under oath on Wednesday, Jan. 5, said that he and his two c…
Sentencing Postponed For Maryland Teen Who Pleaded Guilty To Killing Israeli Tourist Sentencing Postponed For Maryland Teen Who Pleaded Guilty To Killing Israeli Tourist
Sentencing Postponed For Maryland Teen Who Pleaded Guilty To Killing Israeli Tourist The sentencing for a man who pleaded guilty to killing Israeli tourist Efraim Gordon in 2021 has been postponed, reports CBS News. Omarion Anderson, 18, is one of three suspects accused of killing Gordon, who was visiting Baltimore for a family wedding, on May 3, 2021. Anderson pleaded guilty to first degree murder nearly a year later in May 2022, with his scheduled sentencing becoming postponed due to reported scheduling conflicts with his attorney, continues the outlet. All three of the suspects accused of being involved in Gordon's death were under 18 years old at the time of the murder.…
Armed Robber Admits Role In Multiple Liquor, Convenience Store Holdups In NJ, NY Armed Robber Admits Role In Multiple Liquor, Convenience Store Holdups In NJ, NY
Armed Robber Admits Role In Multiple Liquor, Convenience Store Holdups In NJ, NY UPDATE: A member of a New Jersey-based armed robbery crew copped to holding up five liquor and convenience stores in two states, federal authorities said. Jaime Fontanez, 45, of Elizabeth and two accomplices went on a six-month armed robbery spree beginning in August 2018, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said. Federal authorities tied the crew to 13 holdups in all in Essex, Union and Middlesex counties, as well as in the Bronx and upstate New York, the U.S. attorney said. The robbers followed a basic script, with two of them going into the business with their faces covered while a wheelm…
Feds: Female Duo Admits Dealing Meth Throughout South Jersey Feds: Female Duo Admits Dealing Meth Throughout South Jersey
Feds: Female Duo Admits Dealing Meth Throughout South Jersey Two women caught trafficking meth through South Jersey took plea deals rather than risk federal prosecution, authorities said. Sherri Craig, 42, of Clementon, New Jersey, and Shannon Foster, 27, of Egg Harbor City, formally agreed on Thursday, Oct. 13, to mandatory five-year minimum sentences -- and possibly more time. All of it must be served because there's no parole in the federal prison system. Several federal agencies teamed up to investigate Craig and Foster, who "regularly" bought methamphetamine from suppliers and conspired with each other, and others, to deal it throughout the so…
Man Admits To Random Supermarket Stabbing Murder In Area Man Admits To Random Supermarket Stabbing Murder In Area
Man Admits To Random Supermarket Stabbing Murder In Area A Hudson Valley man who walked up to a stranger at a grocery store and fatally stabbed him in the neck has pleaded guilty to murder. Orange County resident, Andrew Goodenough, age 41, of New Windsor, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Feb. 2, to the murder of Michael Kohus, age 35, of Highland Falls in June 2016, according to Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler. At the time that he pleaded guilty, Goodenough admitted that he stabbed and killed Kohus who was shopping at a supermarket in the Town of New Windsor.  Police and prosecutors were unable to discover any p…
Camden County Woman, 35, Pleads Guilty In Fatal Motel Shooting: Prosecutor Camden County Woman, 35, Pleads Guilty In Fatal Motel Shooting: Prosecutor
Camden County Woman, 35, Pleads Guilty In Fatal Motel Shooting: Prosecutor A 35-year-old woman from Camden County has admitted to fatally shooting a man in a motel room, authorities said. Brandy M. Lee, of Runnemede, pleaded guilty to first-degree aggravated manslaughter for the shooting death of 26-year-old Kevin D. Owens III inside on the 100 block of East 9th Avenue in Runnemede, according to Camden County Prosecutor Grace C. MacAulay. The shooting occurred on June 22, 2020, around 3:30 a.m., she said. Surveillance video showed Lee was the only person to enter and exit the motel room during the time of the shooting, the prosecutor's office previoiusly said. Le…
CT Man Involved In Drug Ring Sentenced CT Man Involved In Drug Ring Sentenced
CT Man Involved In Drug Ring Sentenced A Connecticut man has been sentenced to 43 months in federal prison for his role in a southeastern Connecticut drug trafficking ring. New London County resident Victor Encarnacion, age 34, of Norwich, was sentenced on Thursday, Jan. 27, said Leonard Boyle, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut,  According to the US Attorney's Office, Encarnacion was busted during an investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration into the distribution of narcotics and illegal possession of firearms in southeastern Connecticut.  The investigation, which included court-authorized wir…