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Police & Fire
Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Crash With State Trooper Was 'Sublimely Talented' Guitarist Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Crash With State Trooper Was 'Sublimely Talented' Guitarist
Motorcyclist Killed In NJ Crash With State Trooper Was 'Sublimely Talented' Guitarist They called him Frankie Fender. Frank Lando, that is: The 65-year-old Toms River motorcyclist, guitarist, and father killed in an April 9 crash in Southampton with a New Jersey state trooper. On Friday, April 19, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin released Lando's identity, as well as that of the trooper involved: Anthony Fernandes. Fernandes was conducting routine patrol duties along Route 70 around 11:35 a.m. in Southampton that day, when his marked patrol car collided with Lando's motorcycle near Burrs Mill Road, Platkin said. Lando was taken to Virtua Mount Holly …

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Pedestrian Struck, Killed In South Amboy Pedestrian Struck, Killed In South Amboy
Pedestrian Killed South Amboy A pedestrian was struck and killed in South Amboy, authorities said. The person was struck at about 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday, April 17 on South Broadway, according to daily New Jersey State Police fatal crash data. South Amboy police were not immediately available with more details.

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Atlantic City Boardwalk Fire Investigated By County Prosecutor's Office: City Spokesperson Atlantic City Boardwalk Fire Investigated By County Prosecutor's Office: City Spokesperson
Atlantic City Boardwalk Fire Investigated By County Prosecutor's Office: City Spokesperson The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office is investigating a fire along the Atlantic City Boardwalk, according to an official. A city spokesperson said on Friday, Apr. 19, that the county prosecutor's office was now leading the fire investigation. The fire appeared to be in the area of Central Pier Arcade near South Tennessee Avenue and St. James Place on Thursday, Apr. 18. Heather Deegan Hires provided photos to the Daily Voice showing large flumes of black smoke over the pier and beachfront.  "This is at the end of my street," she said in a Facebook post. "I hope everyone is ok!! I f…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
NJ Jail Officer Admits Bringing Inmate To 'Blind Spot' For Beating By Colleagues NJ Jail Officer Admits Bringing Inmate To 'Blind Spot' For Beating By Colleagues
NJ Jail Officer Admits Bringing Inmate To 'Blind Spot' For Beating By Colleagues 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: A Passaic County correctional officer admitted that he brought an inmate to a "blind spot" at the county jail so two colleagues could beat him for squirting one of them with urine. Officer Lorenzo Bowden, 39, initially agreed with Sgt. Jose Gonzalez and Sgt. Donald Vinales not to talk after they'd received federal grand jury subpoenas two years ago this month, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said. Bowden eventually had a change of heart. The pretrial detainee was "transported through an area of the PCJ that does not have a video surveillance camera, which correctional officers …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Piscataway Wife Had Husband Sell Jewelry She Stole From Job At Senior Living Facility: Cops Piscataway Wife Had Husband Sell Jewelry She Stole From Job At Senior Living Facility: Cops
Piscataway Wife Had Husband Sell Jewelry She Stole From Job At Senior Living Facility: Cops A husband and wife have been arrested for stealing and selling jewelry from the senior living facility she worked at, authorities announced. Ana Rios, 40, of Piscataway, would swipe pieces of jewelry from residents of a Bridgewater senior living facility where she worked as a housekeeper, then turned them over to her 43-year-old husband, Ezequiel Rios, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Rios then sold two of the pieces, which McDonald said held a street value estimated at $45,000. Ana is believed to have stolen the jewelry between May 2023 and February 2024. P…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
NJ Teacher Who Posed As Woman To Lure 70 Boys Into Sending Him Nudes Gets 17½ Years: Feds NJ Teacher Who Posed As Woman To Lure 70 Boys Into Sending Him Nudes Gets 17½ Years: Feds
NJ Teacher Who Posed As Woman To Lure 70 Boys Into Sending Him Nudes Gets 17½ Years: Feds UPDATE: It's a measure of how despicably and disgustingly a former Union County grade-school teacher and youth soccer coach from Morristown abused dozens of boys he'd met online that a plea bargain got him "only" 17½ years in federal prison. Steven Brooks, 37, must serve at least 85% of the negotiated sentence handed down in federal court in Newark on Thursday, April 18, for posing as a woman to lure at least 70 underage boys into sending him nude photos and videos. That means he'll be in his early 50s before he'll be eligible to experience freedom again. FBI agents who investigated Brooks…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
NJ HS Teacher Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Student Freed From Jail Until Trial NJ HS Teacher Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Student Freed From Jail Until Trial
NJ HS Teacher Accused Of Sexually Assaulting Student Freed From Jail Until Trial A Mercer County high school teacher accused of sexually assaulting a student several times at a Monmouth County wildlife preserve was released from jail to await her trial, authorities said. A judge denied a request on Wednesday, Apr. 17 to keep 37-year-old Jessica Sawicki of Point Pleasant Beach in jail through her trial, a Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office spokesperson said. She was charged with five counts of second-degree sexual assault and five counts of second-degree endangering the welfare of a child. Sawicki was arrested on Monday, Apr. 8, according to an affidavit obtai…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
License Permanently Stripped From NJ Doc Who Let 20-Year-Old ER Patient Die License Permanently Stripped From NJ Doc Who Let 20-Year-Old ER Patient Die
License Permanently Stripped From NJ Doc Who Let 20-Year-Old ER Patient Die UPDATE: An ER doctor had her medical license permanently revoked by the state of New Jersey for allowing a 20-year-old patient to die on her watch and then trying to cover it up, authorities said. Shar Kennett, 66, of Wayne was on duty in the emergency room at Overlook Medical Center in Summit when the patient was brought in with urgent "respiratory distress" on June 29, 2017, Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. Kennett failed to examine him and didn't order any diagnostics, "despite his parents' urgent requests for assistance," Platkin said on Thursday, April 18. The patient died in…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Man Injured In Crash Caused By 17-Year-Old: Montgomery Police Man Injured In Crash Caused By 17-Year-Old: Montgomery Police
Man Injured In Crash Caused By 17-Year-Old: Montgomery Police A 17-year-old Skillman resident was cited following a two-car crash that injured a 32-year-old Illinois man in Montgomery, police said. At 1:56 p.m., police responded to the crash at County Road 601 near Skillman Road. A 17-year-old from Skillman was traveling north on County Route 601 in a Lexus GX when he failed to maintain his travel lane while negotiating the "S" curve portion of the roadway, Montgomery police said in a release. His vehicle entered the opposite lane of travel and struck a southbound 2021 Toyota Tacoma, police said. The 17-year-old and his 16-year-old passenger were not …

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Maserati Driven By 82-Year-Old Leaves Pedestrian Critical In Route 35 Crash: Prosecutor Maserati Driven By 82-Year-Old Leaves Pedestrian Critical In Route 35 Crash: Prosecutor
Maserati Driven By 82-Year-Old Leaves Pedestrian Critical In Route 35 Crash: Prosecutor A man is fighting for his life after he was struck by a luxury sports car while crossing a busy road in Monmouth County, authorities said. Wall Township police responded to the crash involving a pedestrian at the intersection of Route 35 and Warren Avenue at around 11:22 a.m. on Monday, Apr. 15. Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago released new details about the wreck in a news release on Thursday, Apr. 18. Investigators said an 82-year-old man driving a 2007 Maserati was making a left turn onto Route 35. The driver hit a 78-year-old man who was crossing the road from east to west in…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Pedestrian Crash Closes Route 18 In Piscataway (DEVELOPING) Pedestrian Crash Closes Route 18 In Piscataway (DEVELOPING)
Pedestrian Crash Closes Route 18 In Piscataway (Developing) A pedestrian crash closed all lanes of Route 18 in Piscataway Wednesday night, April 17, the DOT site says. As of 8:30 p.m., a 20-minute delay was reported due to an "accident investigation and pedestrian crash" on the southbound side of the roadway, north of the John Lynch Bridge. Traffic cameras show vehicles piled up on the highway. This is a developing story. Check back for details.

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Sayreville Dad Accused Of Killing 9-Year-Old Son Dies: Prosecutor Sayreville Dad Accused Of Killing 9-Year-Old Son Dies: Prosecutor
Manuel Rivera Dies The 43-year-old Sayreville man accused of killing his 9-year-old has died, authorities announced. Manuel Rivera had been charged with arson and murder for killing his 9-year-old son, Christian, near Sayreville High School on March 28. ALSO SEE: Body Of 'Superstar' NJ 9-Year-Old Believed Killed By Dad Not Yet Released Rivera died on Wednesday, April 17 at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, according to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office. He had suffered from self-inflicted stab wounds and burns and remained in critical condition until his death, the prosecutor said. R…

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by Jon Craig