One Dead In Route 3 Crash, Authorities Confirm One Dead In Route 3 Crash, Authorities Confirm
One Dead In Route 3 Crash, Authorities Confirm A driver who was killed in a chain-reaction crash on Route 3 was identified as a 46-year-old Kearny resident. A BMW X3 had become disabled and was stopped on the westbound Passaic River Bridge in Clifton when it was struck by a Subaru Impreza driven by Karen Garcia shortly before 5 a.m. last Thursday, Dec. 15. Garcia's Impreza was then broadsided by an oncoming Toyota Prius, Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia M. Valdes and Clifton Police Chief Thomas Rinaldi said in a joint release on Monday, Dec. 19. Garcia, who was extricated by firefighters, was later pronounced dead at Hackensack Unive…
Bail Reform Was Once This Bergen Serial Burglar's Friend — Not Anymore: Authorities Bail Reform Was Once This Bergen Serial Burglar's Friend — Not Anymore: Authorities
Bail Reform Was Once This Bergen Serial Burglar's Friend — Not Anymore: Authorities Charges continue to mount against a one-man crime wave – and onetime bail reform poster boy – whom judges have kept held in the Bergen County Jail since mid-October. Police in Glen Rock and Wyckoff became the latest to charge Nicola Torres, 40, of Passaic, with commercial burglaries in their towns. That makes more than a dozen municipal police departments in four New Jersey counties just this year alone. Torres has a criminal record that stretches back more than 15 years, mostly for business break-ins. More recently, the 6-foot-2-inch, 240-pound felon has been repeatedly arrested and the…
Saddle Brook Police Chief Eyes Reinstatement, Restitution After Judge Stops Funeral Escort Case Saddle Brook Police Chief Eyes Reinstatement, Restitution After Judge Stops Funeral Escort Case
Saddle Brook Police Chief Eyes Reinstatement, Restitution After Judge Stops Funeral Escort Case Suspended Saddle Brook Police Chief Robert Kugler is seeking reinstatement, and restitution, following a judge's ruling that he was wrongly being prosecuted for assigning police escorts to processions from his family-owned funeral home. And despite having waited 18 months for vindication, Kugler isn’t angry. “I’ve turned the page,” he told Daily Voice. “I’m moving forward and expect to proudly return to be chief of police once again and serve my community and the general public. “It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.” State authorities wrongly applied a borough ordinance meant to keep police …
UPDATE: Stolen Car Chase Ends In Fiery Crash, Two In Custody On Route 3 UPDATE: Stolen Car Chase Ends In Fiery Crash, Two In Custody On Route 3
Update: Stolen Car Chase Ends In Fiery Crash, Two In Custody On Route 3 A stolen car chase from Belleville to Rutherford before dawn Sunday ended with a fiery crash and two arrests, authorities said. Three occupants bailed out of the stolen SUV and fled into a nearby residential area following the crash on eastbound Route 3 just west of Orient Way shortly before 1:30 a.m. Oct. 30, the witnesses said. Rutherford Police Lt. David Dovato nabbed one of them. A Bergen County Sheriff's K-9 Unit grabbed the other. Both were turned over to Belleville police. The third suspect got away. On eastbound Route 3 near Orient Way in Rutherford.RUTHERFORD FIRE DEPT No seri…
FOOTBRAWL: St. Mary, Harrison High School Game Stopped After Benches Clear, Fans Rush Field FOOTBRAWL: St. Mary, Harrison High School Game Stopped After Benches Clear, Fans Rush Field
Footbrawl: St. Mary, Harrison High School Game Stopped After Benches Clear, Fans Rush Field Benches cleared and fans ran onto the field during a brawl that canceled the varsity football game Saturday between St. Mary and Harrison high schools in Rutherford before halftime. Police restored order as the Oct. 29th game was called in only the second quarter with the Gaels of St. Mary winning 30-0. No injuries were reported, Rutherford Police Chief John Russo said. An investigation was underway with possible charges expected. "It began with players and coaches, then ended with fans entering the field," the chief said. "We have accusations of several assaults but we were una…
Everything 50% Off At Iconic Bergen County Costume Shop Going Out Of Business Everything 50% Off At Iconic Bergen County Costume Shop Going Out Of Business
Everything 50% Off At Iconic Bergen County Costume Shop Going Out Of Business A horror story right before Halloween: One of Bergen County's most popular costume shops is going out of business. But good news for shoppers in the market for a last minute costume: Everything at the Fun-Ghoul Costume Co., which opened 37 years ago is 50 percent off. Owner Cliff Witmyer tells NorthJersey.com that online shopping has hurt his Rutherford business. Witmyer opened the Park Avenue shop with his mom, Cis Witmyer, in 1987 as a full-service, specialty theatrical costume source. According to its website, Fun-Ghoul specialized in rare accessories, prosthetics and special …
Family Tesla Gets Stranded On RR Tracks, Train Service Suspended On Pascack Valley Line Family Tesla Gets Stranded On RR Tracks, Train Service Suspended On Pascack Valley Line
Family Tesla Gets Stranded On RR Tracks, Train Service Suspended On Pascack Valley Line A family of four had to bail out of their Tesla after it got stuck on the railroad tracks near the Emerson train station. NJ TRANSIT stopped Pascack Valley Line rail service in both directions between Oradell and Woodcliff Lake following the mishap in the area of Lindwood Avenue and Kinderkamack Road shortly before 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25. Substitute bus service was being provided. NJ TRANSIT stopped Pascack Valley Line rail service in both directions between Oradell and Woodcliff Lake following the mishap in the area of Lindwood Avenue and Kinderkamack Road shortly before 3:30 p.…
Bail Reform Poster Boy Wanted On Warrants Out Of Eight North Jersey Towns Nabbed By Maywood PD Bail Reform Poster Boy Wanted On Warrants Out Of Eight North Jersey Towns Nabbed By Maywood PD
Bail Reform Poster Boy Wanted On Warrants Out Of Eight North Jersey Towns Nabbed By Maywood PD A serial burglar wanted on warrants out of no fewer than eight towns in four counties was captured by Maywood police and charged with a break-in at a local dry cleaner. Nicolas G. Torres, 40, of Passaic, has been repeatedly arrested and then subsequently released under New Jersey’s 2017 bail reform law, mostly on commercial burglary charges, over the past several years, records show. His criminal record stretches back more than a decade before that, however. Earlier this year, Torres was linked to break-ins at businesses in Fort Lee, Leonia, Englewood Cliffs, Little Falls, Montclair, Ridg…
Fire Races Through North Arlington Home Under Renovation Fire Races Through North Arlington Home Under Renovation
Fire Races Through North Arlington Home Under Renovation Firefighters doused a stubborn blaze that ravaged a North Arlington home that neighbors said was being renovated. The fire ignited in the two-story, wood-frame home on Union Avenue between 3rd and 4th streets shortly before 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 22. It quickly went to three alarms, spreading from the first floor through the attic, followed by a fourth bell for coverage. The inner stairs were compromised, forcing firefighters up ladders at the Union Avenue home in North Arlington.Tony Greco The inner stairs were compromised, forcing firefighters to climb onto the roof over the firs…
Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford
Authorities Try To ID Man Struck, Killed By Train In Rutherford A man was rendered unidentifiable when he was struck and killed by a commuter train in Rutherford. Police found the dismembered body after responding to the call near the intersection of Park and East Erie avenues just west of the Rutherford train station shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 17. He'd been struck by the Bergen County Line No. 1854 train, which left Waldwick at 7:35 a.m. and was due to arrive in Hoboken at 8:20 a.m., NJ TRANSIT's Jim Smith said. It apparently wasn't an accident, responders at the scene said. It was also the second violent death in roughly 14 hours in Rutherf…
SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say SNEAKY PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say
Sneaky PEEK: 'Upskirter' Caught Snapping Shots Of Bergen Shopper's Private Parts, Police Say A brazen voyeur from Hackensack took "upskirting" to an extreme, authorities said, when a browsing shopper found him lying on the floor of a discount department store snapping photos up her dress. Marco Alvear, 40, scrambled to his feet and ran from the Lyndhurst store after the horrified 53-year-old Rutherford woman discovered what he was doing, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. Lyndhurst Detectives Chris Cuneo and Tom McSweeney identified Alvear, the lieutenant said, thanks to video surveillance from the store, which won't be identified here because of its cooperation with them. They al…
Firefighters Douse Lyndhurst Chemical Fire Firefighters Douse Lyndhurst Chemical Fire
Firefighters Douse Lyndhurst Chemical Fire A smoky Labor Day fire in a chemical processing machine at a Lyndhurst plant didn't create a potential health hazard, authorities said. Firefighters quickly doused the blaze, which broke out on the second floor of the Sika Corporation building on Polito Avenue down the road from Medieval Times shortly before 2:30 p.m. A faulty electrical component on processing equipment was the cause, authorities said. The first arriving companies "rapidly located the source of the fire in the smoke-filled area and averted a major incident from happening," Lyndhurst Fire Chief Louis Pipon said. Dry chem…