Brookfield, CT
News
Man From Fairfield County Admits To Paying Bribes For Contracts At Colleges In NY, MA Man From Fairfield County Admits To Paying Bribes For Contracts At Colleges In NY, MA
Man From Fairfield County Admits To Paying Bribes For Contracts At Colleges In NY, MA A Connecticut contractor admitted to securing deals at colleges in New York and Massachusetts in exchange for a kickback fee over the course of several years, federal officials announced. Fairfield County resident Stephen Dinapoli, age 42, of Wilton, the principal of a Connecticut environmental consulting firm in Norwalk, pleaded guilty in federal court in Springfield in Hampden County for his role in paying bribes to procure consulting contracts at educational institutions in Massachusetts and New York. Specifically, federal prosecutors said that Dinapoli pleaded guilty to one count of con…

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by Zak Failla
Hackensack, NJ
News
$10 EACH: Pharmacist Charged With Selling COVID Vax Cards On eBay, Feds Warn Against Fakes $10 EACH: Pharmacist Charged With Selling COVID Vax Cards On eBay, Feds Warn Against Fakes
$10 Each: Pharmacist Charged With Selling COVID Vax Cards On eBay, Feds Warn Against Fakes A licensed pharmacist was arrested by federal agents Tuesday for selling COVID-19 vaccination cards on eBay as government warnings against buying cards increased. Tangtang Zhao, 34, of Chicago worked for a pharmacy that distributed and administered vaccines – and with them the vax cards -- at its locations nationwide, Justice Department Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. said. Zhao got his hands on 125 authentic Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccination cards that he sold to nearly a dozen different buyers for $10 each, Polite said. “Knowingly selling COVID vacc…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Lyndhurst, NJ
News
Feds: Message App Shows How Pair Stole $10M Worth Of HIV Meds From NJ Veterans Hospital Feds: Message App Shows How Pair Stole $10M Worth Of HIV Meds From NJ Veterans Hospital
Feds: Message App Shows How Pair Stole $10M Worth Of HIV Meds From NJ Veterans Hospital UPDATE: Encrypted messages outline how a former pharmacy worker stole $10 million worth of HIV medications from a New Jersey veterans hospital with the help of a black-market fence from Bergen County, authorities charged. Surveillance cameras had already caught pharmacy tech Lisa M. Hoffman of Orange stealing the drugs from the shelves of the outpatient pharmacy at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) in East Orange, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said earlier this year. According to an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Newark this week,  federal agents also s…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Hackensack, NJ
News
FBI: Don’t Even Think Of Using A Phony COVID Vaccination Card FBI: Don’t Even Think Of Using A Phony COVID Vaccination Card
FBI: Don’t Even Think Of Using A Phony COVID Vaccination Card It was inevitable that there’d be a black market for COVID vaccination cards, which has prompted warnings from federal authorities. It might be tempting to print out and fill in a blank vaccination card you bought online -- or on the street. Just be warned: You’re not just putting others at risk. You’re also facing possible federal charges if you’re caught with a forged card, the FBI says. "If you did not receive the vaccine, do not buy fake vaccine cards, do not make your own vaccine cards, and do not fill-in blank vaccination record cards with false information," the bureau warns. "By …

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by Jerry DeMarco
Mount Pleasant, NY
News
NY Man Threatened To Kill Members Of Congress After Capitol Riot, Feds Say NY Man Threatened To Kill Members Of Congress After Capitol Riot, Feds Say
NY Man Threatened To Kill Members Of Congress After Capitol Riot, Feds Say A 37-year-old man who was once an Occupy Wall Street activist and later became a Trump fanatic has been charged with threatening to murder U.S. officials including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, soon-to-be Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York City. Brendan Hunt, of Queens, also known as “X-Ray Ultra,” was arrested on Tuesday, Jan. 19 in Queens and is being detained pending trial, said Seth D. DuCharme, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. As alleged in the complaint, on Friday, Jan. 8, two days after the riot in the U.S.…

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by Kathy Reakes
Newark, NJ
News
Feds: Jamaican Traveler Caught Smuggling Kilo Of Cocaine Into Newark Airport Feds: Jamaican Traveler Caught Smuggling Kilo Of Cocaine Into Newark Airport
Feds: Jamaican Traveler Caught Smuggling Kilo Of Cocaine Into Newark Airport A Jamaican traveler was caught trying to smuggle more than two pounds of cocaine into Newark Airport in bags of coffee and picture frames, federal authorities said. Federal agents seized Perez Omar Gibbs, 37, after he arrived over the weekend aboard a flight from Montego Bay and charged him with importing drugs, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said Monday. U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor ordered that Gibbs remain in federal custody without bail during a video-conferenced hearing Monday in Newark. Honig credited special agents of the New Jersey Division of the U.S. Department of…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paterson, NJ
Police & Fire
President: Out-Of-State Agitators Hijacking Peaceful Protests Will Be Prosecuted President: Out-Of-State Agitators Hijacking Peaceful Protests Will Be Prosecuted
President: Out-Of-State Agitators Hijacking Peaceful Protests Will Be Prosecuted Peaceful protests across the country have been "hijacked by outside radicals and agitators exploiting the situation to pursue their own separate and violent agenda," Attorney General William P. Barr said Saturday. Meanwhile, President Trump called on "Liberal Governors and Mayors” to get “much tougher” in dealing with protesters “or the Federal Government will step in and do what has to be done, and that includes using the unlimited power of our Military and many arrests.” “Crossing State lines to incite violence is a FEDERAL CRIME!" Trump tweeted. Protesters rallied peacefully in Englewoo…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Stamford, CT
News
Convicted Stamford Drug Dealer Admits To Possessing Firearm Convicted Stamford Drug Dealer Admits To Possessing Firearm
Convicted Stamford Drug Dealer Admits To Possessing Firearm A Fairfield County man with a previous conviction admitted to a new federal firearm charge, U.S. Attorney John Durham announced. Kevin Genis, 27, of Stamford, pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon, Durham said. He’s been detained since his arrest in June last year and initially pleaded not guilty to the charge. It is alleged that on May 28 last year, an individual working with law enforcement bought a Century Arms International 7.62 caliber AK pistol and 10 rounds of ammunition from Genis for $900. Durham noted that in November 2015, Ge…

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by Zak Failla
Paramus, NJ
Police & Fire
Driver Admits Impersonating FBI Agent During Paramus Traffic Stop Driver Admits Impersonating FBI Agent During Paramus Traffic Stop
Driver Admits Impersonating FBI Agent During Paramus Traffic Stop A driver from Queens admitted in federal court Thursday that he showed Paramus police who pulled him over this summer a fake badge, creds and security access card while claiming to be an FBI agent. Tornike Lubyk, 28, could face a federal prison sentence and a fine for impersonating a federal agent, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said. Lubyk pleaded guilty to the charge before U.S. District Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark, admitting that he “falsely advised Paramus officers that he was with the FBI’s C-22 organized crime squad based in the Manhattan field office” during a July traffic stop…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Fair Lawn-Glen Rock, NJ
Police & Fire
Fair Lawn Detective Makes Arrests In Separate Mailbox Check Thefts Fair Lawn Detective Makes Arrests In Separate Mailbox Check Thefts
Fair Lawn Detective Makes Arrests In Separate Mailbox Check Thefts A Fair Lawn police detective nailed two different people in connection with the thefts of checks that residents mailed outside the Radburn Post Office. In each case, the checks never made it to their destinations and were cashed by someone else, Sgt. Brian Metzler said. Detective Paul Donohue made arrests in both. Michelle Rivera, 18 of Paterson, was charged with theft by deception after claiming that she gave her bank card to an unidentified person who wanted to cash one of the checks. Gilbert Acevedo, 21, of Paterson, was charged with the same offense after admitting that he was paid $3…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Fair Lawn-Glen Rock, NJ
Police & Fire
Latest Mailbox Theft, Outside Glen Rock Post Office, Costs Ridgewood Woman $1,788 Latest Mailbox Theft, Outside Glen Rock Post Office, Costs Ridgewood Woman $1,788
Latest Mailbox Theft, Outside Glen Rock Post Office, Costs Ridgewood Woman $1,788 In what’s become an epidemic of sorts, a Ridgewood woman became one of the latest mailbox theft victims after someone stole and cashed $1,788 in checks that she’d deposited outside the Glen Rock Post Office, police said. Thieves who once used wire and some type of adhesive to fish envelopes from boxes are now simply prying them open and snatching bundles of mail -- often from in front of post offices after hours, authorities throughout North Jersey say. Daily Voice reported one earlier today out of Oradell. SEE: Mailbox Thefts Continue, This Time Outside Oradell Post Office Glen Rock…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Paramus, NJ
Police & Fire
Mailbox Thefts Continue, This Time Outside Oradell Post Office Mailbox Thefts Continue, This Time Outside Oradell Post Office
Mailbox Thefts Continue, This Time Outside Oradell Post Office Oradell became the latest town to be victimized by mailbox thieves. Whoever was responsible broke into the boxes outside the Oradell Post Office Sunday night, borough police said. “Numerous pieces of mail were opened and checks taken,” they said. “Some mail was recovered including many holiday cards.” The U.S. Postal Inspection Service was notified. Meanwhile, borough police said, “keep checking your personal accounts for unusual activity if you mailed any money this weekend.” Citizens in towns throughout North Jersey have reported a steady stream of mail thefts. Where once the thieves …

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by Jerry DeMarco