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Police & Fire
GOTCHA! Ex-Con With 30-Year Rap Sheet Charged With Robbing Maywood Dry Cleaners (UPDATE) GOTCHA! Ex-Con With 30-Year Rap Sheet Charged With Robbing Maywood Dry Cleaners (UPDATE)
Gotcha! Ex-Con With 30-Year Rap Sheet Charged With Robbing Maywood Dry Cleaners (Update) You’d be hard-pressed to find a law enforcement officer who didn't recognize the strong-arm robber who assaulted the owner of a Maywood dry cleaners for all of $400. Didn’t take long for Maywood police to find 53-year-old ex-con Shawn Todd of Hasbrouck Heights, who authorities said accosted the owner of Timely Cleaners & Furriers on West Pleasant Avenue late Thursday afternoon. Todd has a rap sheet nearly 30 years long, with arrests and convictions for robbery, aggravated assault and assaulting police. Suffice to say it was no surprise for many who know him to see Todd on surveillance …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Three Men Charged In New Year's Elizabeth Homicide: Prosecutor Three Men Charged In New Year's Elizabeth Homicide: Prosecutor
Three Men Charged In New Year's Elizabeth Homicide: Prosecutor Three Elizabeth men have been charged with a homicide that occurred in the city on New Year's Day 2023. On the early morning hours of the New Year, Elizabeth police responded to 4th Street and found Vladmir Martinez suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and he was pronounced dead at the scene, Union County Prosecutor William Daniel, Elizabeth Police Director Earl Graves, and Elizabeth Police Chief Giacomo Sacca said.  An investigation identified Jofrandy Diaz-Ramirez, 25, Albenys Soto-Fernandez, 25 and Yoel Sanchez, 22, as the men responsible, authorities said. Diaz-Ramirez …

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
Elizabeth Man Convicted Of Shooting Newark Resident In Back of Head: Prosecutor Elizabeth Man Convicted Of Shooting Newark Resident In Back of Head: Prosecutor
Elizabeth Man Convicted Of Shooting Newark Resident In Back of Head: Prosecutor A 20-year-old Elizabeth man was convicted on Wednesday, May 8, of fatally shooting a 25-year-old Newark man in 2022, authorities said. On Feb. 16, 2022, Mahdi Wright shot James Shaw. Jr. in the back of the head as he was standing on the curb talking with two people on the corner of Shephard Avenue and Maples Place, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens said. Wright was found guilty of murder in the first degree and various weapons offenses following a month-long trial. He faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced in June.

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by Sam Barron
Traffic
Truck Veers Off I-287 In Central Jersey (UPDATED) Truck Veers Off I-287 In Central Jersey (UPDATED)
Truck Veers Off I-287 In Central Jersey (Updated) A vehicle veered off of Interstate 287 in Central Jersey, authorities said. The crash occurred at about 7:30 a.m. on Friday, May 10 northbound near Exit 4 (Durham Road) in South Plainfield, according to New Jersey State Police. Troopers responded to a motorist aid, said Sgt. Jeffrey Lebron, a State Police spokesman. Upon the trooper’s arrival, a Freightliner box truck ran off the road and into a ditch, he said. There were no injuries reported, Lebron said. Two right lanes of three lanes were closed causing traffic delays, 511nj.org reported.

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Man Steals Vehicle With Woman, Child Inside: Newark PD Man Steals Vehicle With Woman, Child Inside: Newark PD
Man Steals Vehicle With Woman, Child Inside: Newark PD A man in Newark stole a vehicle with a woman and child in the backseat on Monday, April 29 authorities said. At 8:30 p.m., the suspect, possibly a Hispanic male, jumped into the vehicle at the Super Supermarket parking lot at 810 N 6th Street, Newark Public Safety Director Fritz G. Fragé said. The suspect drove a short distance but stopped the car when he realized a woman and her child were in the backseat, Fragé said. The suspect exited the vehicle and ran southbound on N. 6th Street, Fragé said. The vehicle was recovered, Fragé said. Anyone with information is asked t…

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by Sam Barron
Lifestyle
Tiffany Haddish Wows Fans In North Jersey Tiffany Haddish Wows Fans In North Jersey
Tiffany Haddish Wows Fans In North Jersey More than a hundred people in Bergen County lined up to meet Tiffany Haddish on Thursday, May 9. And she did not disappoint. The actress and comedian appeared at Books and Greetings in Northvale. to sign copies of her new book "I Curse With You Joy." While meeting fans who waited in a line that stretched out the door, Haddish offered hugs, advice and added a parental advisory sticker to each copy of the book, warning someone who told her their kids loved her in "Secret Life of Pets," that they should not read the book. Sam Barron As she took photos with fans, Haddish uttered her mant…

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by Sam Barron
News
Fortune Cookie Predicts $1 Million NJ Lottery Win For Lucky Player Fortune Cookie Predicts $1 Million NJ Lottery Win For Lucky Player
Fortune Cookie Predicts $1 Million NJ Lottery Win For Lucky Player "Believe in miracles." Those were the words one New Jersey Lottery player read on the fortune inside of the cookie he cracked open during after a lo mein treat. Days later, the lucky New Jersey player realized his riches on a CASH4LIFE ticket purchased on his phone, lottery officials said. He'd purchased the prize-winning CASH4LIFE ticket as usual, using the Jackpocket app registered with NJ Lottery to get in the game from the comfort of home. Shortly after each drawing, this player routinely checks the app for results.  On this night in particular, there was a special message waitin…

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by Cecilia Levine
Traffic
One Dead When Car Slams Tree In Somerset County (UPDATE) One Dead When Car Slams Tree In Somerset County (UPDATE)
One Dead When Car Slams Tree In Somerset County (Update) One person was killed in a crash Thursday, May 9 in Franklin Township (Somerset County), authorities confirmed. Firefighters and police were dispatched to the scene at Route 27 near Reler Lane, where a southbound vehicle struck a tree just after 8:05 a.m., Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Police offices, firefighters, and EMS personnel responded to the scene. Due to the extent of the injuries sustained, the victim was pronounced dead at 9:30 a.m.  A section of Route 27 was closed for approximately four hours. The factors that contributed to the crash remain unde…

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by Cecilia Levine
News
NJ Broadway Stage Manager Killed By Train NJ Broadway Stage Manager Killed By Train
NJ Broadway Stage Manager Killed By Train Thomas Gates, the stage manager of a Tony-nominated Broadway show and New Jersey resident, was struck and killed by a train this week. Gates, 51, was struck by Morris and Essex Line train 6324 on Wednesday, May 8 at 9:12 a.m. at the South Orange station, NJ Transit officials confirm. The South Orange resident had been working as the stage manager for "Illinoise," a Broadway show that had four Tony Award nominations this year. The show mourned his loss on its Instagram account, noting he was the "center of Illinoise on Broadway, beloved friend and collaborator. "We are devasted for hi…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Maywood Dry Cleaners Robbed, Owner Assaulted, Suspect Nabbed Maywood Dry Cleaners Robbed, Owner Assaulted, Suspect Nabbed
Maywood Dry Cleaners Robbed, Owner Assaulted, Suspect Nabbed You’d have been hard-pressed to find a law enforcement officer who DIDN’T recognize the strong-arm robber who assaulted the owner of a Maywood dry cleaners for all of $400 late Thursday afternoon. It didn’t take long for Maywood police to find 53-year-old ex-con Shawn Todd of Hasbrouck Heights, who authorities said accosted the owner of Timely Cleaners & Furriers on West Pleasant Avenue. Todd has a rap sheet nearly 30 years long, with arrests and convictions for robbery, aggravated assault and assaulting police. Suffice to say it was no surprise for many who know him to see Todd on sur…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Police & Fire
Driver Seriously Injured In Route 23 Crash: NJSP Driver Seriously Injured In Route 23 Crash: NJSP
Driver Seriously Injured In Route 23 Crash: Njsp A driver was seriously injured in a crash on Route 23, State Police said. The victim was headed south in a Kia SUV that sideswiped a Hyundai sedan coming in the opposite direction, then careened off the road and into a trailer in Wantage around noon Thursday, May 9, NJSP Sgt. Jeffrey Lebron said. The Kia driver was taken to an area hospital, the sergeant said. No other injuries were reported. New Jersey State Police are investigating.

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Hidden Camera Found In Springfield Chiropractor's Office Days Before Birthday, Cops Say Hidden Camera Found In Springfield Chiropractor's Office Days Before Birthday, Cops Say
Chiropractor Gary Hecht Arrest The days leading up to Gary Hecht's 55th birthday could have gone better for the Springfield chiropractor who is facing charges for being a Peeping Tom, authorities said. On May 6, Springfield police received a report of a hidden camera discovered in a bathroom of Gary Hecht's Mountain Avenue office, the Union County Prosecutor's Office said. On Tuesday, May 7, Hecht, of Livingston, was lodged in the Essex County Jail on charges of invasion of privacy and child endangerment, the prosecutor's office said. The Hecht Family Chiropractic Office Google Maps street view Hecht was charge…

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by Zak Failla