North Jersey Drug Ring Leader Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For 55 Pounds Of Coke, More North Jersey Drug Ring Leader Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For 55 Pounds Of Coke, More
North Jersey Drug Ring Leader Gets 6½ Years In Federal Prison For 55 Pounds Of Coke, More UPDATE: A man caught with more than 44 pounds of cocaine and $322,000 in cash in his home must spend the next 6½ years in federal prison -- without parole -- for his role in running a major North Jersey drug ring. Victor Pimentel, 46, of Parsippany, was the last of three men to be sentenced in the case. He and the other two -- Narcisco Ramirez of Passaic and Kiuny Perez of Rockaway Township -- took deals from the government rather than face trial after authorities seized a combined 55 pounds of cocaine and more than $700,000 in drug cash. All three must serve out just about all of their se…
Clifton Officer Struck On Highway, Fleeing DWI Motorist Charged With Assault With Deadly Weapon Clifton Officer Struck On Highway, Fleeing DWI Motorist Charged With Assault With Deadly Weapon
Clifton Officer Struck On Highway, Fleeing DWI Motorist Charged With Assault With Deadly Weapon A driver was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after he hit a Clifton police officer with his car on the shoulder of a highway and then led a pursuit that ended in a crash, authorities said. Officer George Balkjy had stopped a motorcycle on northbound Route 21 near Route 46 around 7 a.m. Tuesday when Luis Villalba, 21, of Paterson tried to pass bottlenecked traffic on the shoulder, Detective Lt. Robert Bracken said. Balkjy stopped the vehicle and was approaching the driver's side when Villalba hit the gas and swerved toward the officer, hitting him in the arm and leg, Bra…
Intruder Climbs In Through Bedroom Window, Rapes Clifton Child: Authorities Intruder Climbs In Through Bedroom Window, Rapes Clifton Child: Authorities
Intruder Climbs In Through Bedroom Window, Rapes Clifton Child: Authorities An intruder climbed in through a Clifton child’s bedroom window, then raped and choked the trapped youngster, authorities said. Andres Vasquez, 24, of Belleville was captured on Friday after Clifton detectives interviewed the victim and witnesses following last Tuesday’s attack, they said. Vasquez, who has a criminal history, remains held in the Passaic County Jail, charged with first-degree aggravated assault and kidnapping, as well as sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual contact, criminal restraint, criminal contact, burglary and child endangerment. Passaic County Prosecutor Cameli…
Clifton Police Officer Admits Sexually Assaulting Child, Faces 8½-Year Prison Minimum Clifton Police Officer Admits Sexually Assaulting Child, Faces 8½-Year Prison Minimum
Clifton Police Officer Admits Sexually Assaulting Child, Faces 8½-Year Prison Minimum It's over: A now-former Clifton police officer admitted Wednesday that he sexually abused a child, authorities said. In exchange for his guilty plea, Frank Castro-Ramirez, 40, is expected to be sentenced to 10 years in state prison, 8½ years of which he must serve before becoming eligible for parole, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdes said. He has also surrendered his job, will remain on lifetime parole and must register as a Megan's Law sex offender under the terms of the plea deal with Valdes’s staff. Clifton police notified detectives with the prosecutor’s Special Victims Unit of …
Gunman Threatens To Shoot Attendant, Robs Clifton Service Station Gunman Threatens To Shoot Attendant, Robs Clifton Service Station
Gunman Threatens To Shoot Attendant, Robs Clifton Service Station SEE ANYTHING? A gunman robbed a Clifton gas station of several hundred dollars in cash, authorities said. The hooded robber approached the Jersey Gas attendant at Lakeview and Crooks avenues with a gun around 4:30 a.m. Sunday, May 1, Detective Lt. Robert Bracken said. He threatened to shoot him if the attendant didn't hand over the cash, then took the money and ran. There isn't much of a description of him, hover. ANYONE who might have witnessed the robbery or its aftermath, or has information that can help identify the robber is asked to contact Clifton police: (973) 470-5900. ****** …
Jurors Convict Child Sex Abuser From Clifton Who Tried To Get Victim To Change Story Jurors Convict Child Sex Abuser From Clifton Who Tried To Get Victim To Change Story
Jurors Convict Child Sex Abuser From Clifton Who Tried To Get Victim To Change Story Jurors in Paterson convicted a Clifton man of sexually assaulting a child over the course of several years. A judge scheduled a July 15 sentencing for Alfredo Hernandez-Sanchez, 35, after he was found guilty of first-degree aggravated sexual assault, as well as sexual assault, aggravated criminal sexual contact and child endangerment, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes said Friday, April 8. Members of the prosecutor’s Special Victims Unit began investigating after being alerted by Clifton police in June 2018, Valdes said. The victim, who was 15 at the time, “reported being sexual…
FALSE ALARM: No Active Shooter At Costco In Clifton, Police Say FALSE ALARM: No Active Shooter At Costco In Clifton, Police Say
False ALARM: No Active Shooter At Costco In Clifton, Police Say A report of shots fired led to what turned out to be the unfounded fear of an active shooter at the Costco in Clifton. "It was a call of shots fired" on Sunday afternoon, March 20, Clifton Police Lt. Robert Bracken said. "Officers responded and did not find an active shooter," Bracken said. They were trying to determine whether there had, indeed, been any shots fired in the area, he said. A large law enforcement contingent converged on the Bridewell Place store off Route 3. Word spread rapidly on social media, fueling fears and further misinformation -- as well as a report of a TV crew in…
Teen Carjackers Drag Driver From Her SUV, Paterson Police Nab Both After Chase Into Clifton Teen Carjackers Drag Driver From Her SUV, Paterson Police Nab Both After Chase Into Clifton
Teen Carjackers Drag Driver From Her SUV, Paterson Police Nab Both After Chase Into Clifton A driver was dragged from her SUV by two carjackers -- one 17, the other 13 -- who were both nabbed by Paterson police after the stolen vehicle caused a chain-reaction crash in Clifton, authorities said. Officer Eddy Pichardo began pursuing the Honda CRV with Connecticut license plates soon after the teens opened the victim's door and yanked her out at the Conoco quick-stop gas station on Main Street around 11:30 p.m. Saturday, city Police Director Jerry Speziale said. Pichardo followed the CRV into Clifton, where the 17-year-old driver suddenly pulled into the parking lot of the CVS at Mai…
Services Scheduled For Paterson Man Shot, Killed By Detective Services Scheduled For Paterson Man Shot, Killed By Detective
Services Scheduled For Paterson Man Shot, Killed By Detective Services are scheduled this coming Saturday for a Paterson man who was shot and killed in a confrontation with city police detectives. Witnesses insist that Thelonious “RaRa” McKnight, 25, was gunned down in cold blood last Wednesday night after detectives chased him down an alley in a mixed-use neighborhood of multi-family homes and businesses near the Passaic River New Jersey's top law enforcer, Acting New Jersey Attorney General Andrew J. Bruck, said that a 9mm handgun was found near McKnight's body. Investigators had made an arrest there hours earlier and were looking for another …
PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton
PD: West Milford Woman Assaults Clifton Officer, Kicks Out Cruiser Window, Grabs Police Baton A West Milford woman punched a Clifton police officer in the head and then kicked out the interior partition window of a patrol cruiser and grabbed a police baton after being handcuffed, authorities said. Ashley Dennison, 33, was with Michael Rompa, 45, of Edison when officers investigating two suspicious vehicles in the Home Depot lot on Bloomfield Avenue spotted them, Detective Sgt. Robert Anderson said Thursday. One of the vehicles was a 2021 GMC pickup reported stolen from East Windsor and the other a 2020 Chevy van reported stolen out of Edison, he said. The couple ran, but Dennison w…
‘Multitude Of Proceeds’ From Area Car Burglaries Found, Passaic Pair Pinched, Clifton PD Says ‘Multitude Of Proceeds’ From Area Car Burglaries Found, Passaic Pair Pinched, Clifton PD Says
‘Multitude Of Proceeds’ From Area Car Burglaries Found, Passaic Pair Pinched, Clifton PD Says A caller led Clifton police to a pair of pre-dawn car burglars from Passaic, authorities said. Officers responding to the 4 a.m. call from an Athenia Avenue resident stopped Angel Lucero, 22, and Joel Tula, 26 in a car nearby, Detective Lt. Robert Bracken said. They arrested both after finding a “multitude of proceeds” stolen from unlocked vehicles in Clifton and elsewhere, he said. Lucero and Tula, who had prior arrests, were charged with burglary and theft and released pending hearings.
Police: Repeat Offender Took $86,000 In Drugs, More In Back-To-Back Wayne Pharmacy Smash-Grabs Police: Repeat Offender Took $86,000 In Drugs, More In Back-To-Back Wayne Pharmacy Smash-Grabs
Police: Repeat Offender Took $86,000 In Drugs, More In Back-To-Back Wayne Pharmacy Smash-Grabs A career criminal who was jailed following a Clifton police car crash during a pursuit stole more than $86,000 worth of drugs, scratch-off lottery tickets and a delivery vehicle from a Wayne pharmacy, authorities said. Joseph Holman, 41, of Passaic broke into the Plains Pharmacy at the Valley Ridge Shopping Center twice in less than 24 hours in late May, Detective Capt. Dan Daly said. The first time, he took $14,200 worth of scratch-off tickets after shattering the glass front door shortly before 4:30 a.m., Daly said. The following day, Wayne Police Officer David Beltran found the front d…