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Police & Fire
Man Convicted Of Strangling Wife, Dumping Body On Side Of Ocean Township Road: Prosecutors Man Convicted Of Strangling Wife, Dumping Body On Side Of Ocean Township Road: Prosecutors
Jeremy Cruz Of Forked River Found Guilty A Forked River man was convicted of strangling his wife to death and leaving her body on the side of a Monmouth County road, authorities said. A jury found 53-year-old Jeremy Cruz guilty of first-degree murder. Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced the conviction in a news release on Friday, Apr. 26. A driver saw 51-year-old Dawn Cruz with severe injuries on Colonial Avenue near the intersection with Asbury Avenue in Ocean Township just after 1 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 30, 2022. Ocean Township police found her and she was pronounced dead at the scen…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Bathroom Ceiling Fan Blamed For House Fire In South Jersey Gated Community: Police Bathroom Ceiling Fan Blamed For House Fire In South Jersey Gated Community: Police
Bathroom Ceiling Fan Blamed For House Fire In South Jersey Gated Community: Police Firefighters quickly put out flames at a home in a gated community in Manchester Township, authorities said. Volunteer firefighters from Manchester, Ridgeway, and Whiting responded to the fire on Edinburgh Lane in the Leisure Village West community at around 3:35 p.m. on Saturday, Apr. 27, Manchester police said in a news release. When firefighters arrived, they learned the fire was caused by a bathroom ceiling fan. The homeowners were not in the house during the fire and only a cleaning crew was there.  No injuries were reported and the residents weren't displaced. The Oce…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Fire Destroys Pizzeria, Food Mart In Jersey Shore Town Fire Destroys Pizzeria, Food Mart In Jersey Shore Town
Fire Destroys Pizzeria, Food Mart In Jersey Shore Town Two Ocean County businesses are recovering after a major fire on Saturday, April 27. Photos show flames shooting from the roof of Jays Food Mart and Cuzzin's Pizzeria in the strip mall on Herbertsville Road. Firefighters say the blaze broke out around 5 p.m. Firefighters are operating at a 3rd alarm structure fire at Cuzzins Pizza on Herbertsville Rd. In Brick. Numerous... Posted by Jersey Coast Emergency News on Saturday, April 27, 2024

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
Machete-Wielding Man Chases Another Driver Through Toms River, Crashes In Brick Township: Cops Machete-Wielding Man Chases Another Driver Through Toms River, Crashes In Brick Township: Cops
Machete-Wielding Man Chases Another Driver Through Toms River, Crashes In Brick Township: Cops A 29-year-old Beachwood man has been arrested in a Toms River road rage incident, police announced. The victim was stopped at a red light on Water Street around 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 24 when a man later identified as Austin Martinez pulled up in a Blue Jeep Liberty, and tapped on the window with a machete, police said. The victim tried to flee from Martinez, but he followed the victim to the Ocean County Mall, chasing them through the parking lot, Toms River police said. The victim called 911 and drove to the Toms River Police Department. The Jeep Liberty continued north on Ho…

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by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
'Large-Scale' PA Burglary Ring Targeted Home In NJ: Prosecutors 'Large-Scale' PA Burglary Ring Targeted Home In NJ: Prosecutors
'Large-Scale' PA Burglary Ring Targeted Home In NJ: Prosecutors Half a dozen people are charged in connection with a "large-scale" home burglary scheme, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office.  At a press conference on Friday, April 26, prosecutors and law enforcement said an organized ring of thieves stole more than $160,000 in goods from homes in Lehigh, Berks and Northampton counties.  They also targeted at least one home in Warren Township, New Jersey, authorities said.  Beginning in 2019, a team of state and local police agencies began investigating burglaries and attempted burglaries in Allentown, Bethl…

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by Mac Bullock
Police & Fire
Man Intentionally Set Fires At Hazlet Property Since December: Police Man Intentionally Set Fires At Hazlet Property Since December: Police
Albert Caporaso Arrested A Monmouth County man was accused of intentionally setting fires on the same property over the past five months, authorities said. Albert Caporaso, 49, of Hazlet, was arrested on early in the morning on Friday, Apr. 26, the Hazlet Township Police Department said in a Facebook post. He was facing charges for several arsons since Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023. A Hazlet officer was watching the South Laurel Avenue home at around 11:56 p.m. on Thursday, Apr. 25, when a man matching the suspect's description from previous arsons walked onto the property. The man, later identified as Caporaso, entered a…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Teens Stabbed, Punched NYC Man At Atlantic City Hotel: Police Teens Stabbed, Punched NYC Man At Atlantic City Hotel: Police
Teens Stabbed, Punched NYC Man At Atlantic City Hotel: Police Two South Jersey teens were accused of taking part in the assault and stabbing of a New York City man at an Atlantic City hotel, authorities said. In a news release on Friday, Apr. 26, Atlantic City police said 19-year-old Julius Reed of Atlantic City and 18-year-old Tyreke Allen-Whittaker of Bridgeton were arrested. The announcement of their arrests came one day after police said 20-year-old Marquise Cottman of Millville was also facing charges in the attack. Police responded to a stabbing at Showboat Hotel Atlantic City on the 800 block of the Boardwalk at around 9 p.m. on Wedne…

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
PA Motorcyclist, 38, Killed In Route 1 Crash Identified By South Brunswick Police PA Motorcyclist, 38, Killed In Route 1 Crash Identified By South Brunswick Police
PA Motorcyclist, 38, Killed In Route 1 Crash Identified By South Brunswick Police Police in Central Jersey have identified the 38-year-old Pennsylvania motorcyclist killed in a Route 1 crash earlier this week. Lawrence Green of Marcus Hook, PA, was operating a Honda motorcycle near Major Road during the 7:40 a.m. crash on Tuesday, April 23, according to South Brunswick police. Green was driving on the shoulder of Route 1 northbound when he was struck by a Chevy Malibu attempting to merge onto the Major Road off-ramp, police said. Police did not release the name of the Chevy Malibu driver and no summonses had been issued. The investigation is still active and anyone wit…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Police ID South River Driver Killed In South Brunswick Crash Police ID South River Driver Killed In South Brunswick Crash
Police ID South River Driver Killed In South Brunswick Crash South Brunswick police have released the name of the driver killed in a single-vehicle crash on Tuesday, April 23. Curtis Bryant 3rd, 65, of South River was driving a Nissan Maxima on Route 535 when the vehicle left the roadway and struck a utility pole, police said. The crash occurred just before 6 a.m. The investigation is still active and anyone with information is asked to call the lead investigator PFC Jason Gassman at (732) 329-4000 ext. 743.

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Woman Killed In Early Morning Crash On Route 9 In Manalapan Woman Killed In Early Morning Crash On Route 9 In Manalapan
Route 9 Crash A woman was killed in an early morning crash in Monmouth County, authorities said. Manalapan police responded to the crash near the intersection of Route 9 and Ryan Road just before 4:30 a.m. on Thursday, Apr. 25, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said in a news release. When officers arrived, they found two vehicles involved in the crash. A woman driving a 2017 Nissan Sentra was rushed to a hospital where she was pronounced dead. A man driving a 2023 Jeep Grand Cherokee stayed at the scene and was brought to a hospital with minor injuries. No charges or summonses have …

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by Chris Spiker
Police & Fire
Pair Who Dumped Body In NYC Face Murder Charges: Somerset County Prosecutor Pair Who Dumped Body In NYC Face Murder Charges: Somerset County Prosecutor
Pair Who Dumped Body In NYC Face Murder Charges: Somerset County Prosecutor The two men who killed a 46-year-old Somerset County resident and then dumped his body in Brooklyn last December were indicted on Thursday, April 25, with first degree murder, authorities said. A grand jury in Somerset County levied the indictments against Daniel Matthews, a 44-year-old Brooklyn resident, and and Andrew Mumby, a 47-year-old New Brunswick resident in the murder of Artis Young, a Franklin Township resident, Somerset County Prosecutor John McDonald, Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of County Detectives Francisco Roman Jr., and Franklin Township Public Safety …

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by Sam Barron
Police & Fire
‘Crypto Con Man’: Imprisoned Instagrifter Gets 7 Federal Years For $8M Fraud Scheme ‘Crypto Con Man’: Imprisoned Instagrifter Gets 7 Federal Years For $8M Fraud Scheme
‘Crypto Con Man’: Imprisoned Instagrifter Gets 7 Federal Years For $8M Fraud Scheme UPDATE: Imprisoned Instagram influencer “Jay Mazini” apparently thought that rolling on his partners in crime could mitigate the damage of a conviction for scamming investors out of at least $8 million. Three years into a mandatory four-year New Jersey state prison sentence for kidnapping an online critic, the 28-year-old Instagrifter from Bergen County agreed to rat out his friends in exchange for leniency in a federal fraud case in Brooklyn. Trouble is: He didn’t deliver much, authorities said. Mazini, whose real name is Jebara Igbara, ended up sentenced to seven years in federal prison …

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by Jerry DeMarco