The two days of bloodshed represents 5 percent of this year's roughly 440 shootings
NEW YORK — Authorities say 25 people have been shot in a 48-hour period over the weekend in New York City.
The Daily News says that includes three fatalities on Sunday, and another three on Saturday.
The two days of bloodshed represents 5 percent of this year's roughly 440 shootings.
That total is still a 23 percent decline from the total of 574 shot through this time last year.
Veteran Edison Patrolman Alan Varady was suspended with pay after he allegedly was found drinking at a barbecue when he should have been patrolling the streets
UPDATE: Officer Varady has now been charged with driving under the influence. More information will be provided as it becomes available.
EDISON — The police officer was in uniform, his marked cruiser parked out front.
But Edison patrolman Alan Varady wasn’t investigating a crime as he sat in a township back yard Saturday afternoon.
He was drinking beer at a barbecue when he should have been patrolling the streets, according to three law enforcement officials with knowledge of the case.
Varady, a 27-year veteran who makes $131,500 a year, had been drinking for several hours when someone alerted the department, said the law enforcement officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case.
Two uniformed supervisors were dispatched to the house to bring Varady and the cruiser to headquarters, where the officer was administered a Breathalyzer test, the officials said. The test results could not immediately be obtained.
Varady, 51, was promptly suspended, but he will continue to collect his salary pending disciplinary action.
The incident marks the latest in a long series of embarrassments and black marks for the Edison Police Department, the subject of a two-part series in The Star-ledger in December. The department’s troubles have continued apace since then, with infighting among some officers and new episodes of alleged wrongdoing or criminal behavior by members of the force.
In the most high-profile case, an officer with a history of disciplinary problems was charged with five counts of attempted murder late last month for allegedly setting fire to his captain’s home while the supervisor and his family slept inside. All escaped without injury.
The officer, Michael Dotro, remains jailed on $5 million cash bail.
Edison Mayor Antonia Ricigliano said the continuing disciplinary problems in the department show that "something is obviously amiss."
"Clearly, the system is not working," Ricigliano said last night. "We need to do something, and we need to do it quickly."
The mayor, who serves as public safety director, said she plans to meet later this week with acting Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey about the ongoing problems. In particular, Ricigliano said, she wants monthly reports from the police department’s professional standards unit on patterns of behavior by officers.
"If there seems to be a pattern of negative behavior, it’s something that needs to be dealt with," Ricigliano said. "If you deal with issues as they come up, you can prevent bad things from happening."
It appears that Saturday’s incident involving Varady did not amount to a criminal offense, but it could have resulted in his arrest — and imperiled the public — had he climbed behind the wheel of his cruiser drunk.
Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan would not address details of the probe, but he confirmed the department received a complaint about Varady drinking on the job.
"We took immediate action," Bryan said. "It’s under investigation. And as always, I’m not going to tolerate any police misconduct."
He declined to say what kind of punishment Varady could face.
"The appropriate discipline will be administered," Bryan said.
Varady could not be reached for comment. The law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity described him as a well-liked officer with no serious disciplinary history.
In its December series, The Star-Ledger reported that at least 30 Edison police officers had been fired or abruptly resigned amid allegations of inappropriate or illegal behavior over the past two decades.
That record of misconduct was unmatched by any department of equivalent size in New Jersey and, on a per-officer basis, was far worse than the state’s largest law enforcement agency, the State Police.
At the same time, officers and supervisors have been mired in a long battle for control of the department.
At least 16 members of the force have filed suit in recent years against the chief, the mayor or the township, claiming age discrimination, retaliation, harassment or political influence over promotions and demotions. Those suits have cost taxpayers millions of dollars in settlements and legal fees.
In January, the Attorney General’s Office stepped up oversight of Edison’s internal affairs division but has rejected calls for a department-wide takeover.
• Possible motive emerges in Edison cop's alleged arson attack on captain's home
• Edison cop charged with attempted murder in firebomb attack on supervisor's home
• $20K reward offered following firebombing of Edison cop's home
• Molotov cocktail may have been used to firebomb home of Edison cop, sources say
• Betraying the badge: Edison police produce astonishing record of misconduct
• Law and disorder: Edison's police force plagued by infighting, lawsuits
In N.J., rate is slightly below national average - but black person is still 2.8 times more likely to be arrested for pot, ACLU report found
Blacks are nearly three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites in New Jersey, and roughly four times as likely nationwide, according to a report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union that showed a deep racial divide in arrests in several counties throughout the state.
While the two races use marijuana at roughly the same rate, the report said, blacks were up to 30 times more likely to be arrested in some parts of the country. In two Alabama counties, for example, 100 percent of those arrested for marijuana possession in 2010 were black, the report said.
Nationwide, blacks were arrested at a rate of 716 per 100,000 in 2010 — the most recent year studied — up from 537 in 2001, according to the report. Whites were arrested at a rate of 192 per 100,000 in 2010, nearly the same as in 2001. The report also said marijuana arrests accounted for more than half of all drug arrests in the country, and roughly 43 percent in New Jersey.
The report was compiled using data from FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports and the U.S. Census. It does not specify how police came to make the arrests or if the arrests were made in conjunction with other crimes. However, the ACLU said the arrests were not connected to violent crime.
Alexander Shalom, policy counsel for the state chapter of the ACLU, said the racial divide could be deeper if adjusted for the Hispanic population, which is counted as white in FBI reports.
Still, the data is clear evidence that police across the country unfairly target minorities in order to pump up arrest totals, according to one of the report’s authors.
"The war on marijuana has disproportionately been a war on people of color," said Ezekiel Edwards, director of the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project.
According the report, blacks in New Jersey were 2.8 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites, below the national average of 3.73.
Several counties reported deep disparities in arrest rates.
In Hunterdon County, where more than 90 percent of the population is white, blacks were five times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession, the report said. Five other counties — Ocean, Monmouth, Mercer, Warren and Salem counties — had disparities higher than the national average, the report said.
Law enforcement officials were quick to note the limitations of the study.
Toms River Police Chief Michael Mastronardy said it would be difficult to determine racism as a motive for the disparity without knowing how police came to make those arrests. Marijuana arrests are often secondary to motor vehicle stops or domestic disturbances, situations in which officers are dispatched without knowing the race of the people involved.
"If you’re stopping somebody at night, you don’t know (the race)," he said, adding the same is true " if you’re called to a disturbance and you start running warrants."
John Kuczynski, chief of detectives for the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office, shot down any suggestion police in his county were making arrests based on race. He said the bulk of marijuana arrests in the county are the result of motor-vehicle stops, but added that he is willing to discuss the report’s findings with the ACLU.
"It’s not based upon race," he said. "It’s based upon offense whoever is trafficking."
The state Attorney General’s Office declined to comment. Calls to law enforcement leaders in Monmouth, Salem and Warren counties were not retuned.
Peter Moskos, a criminologist at the John Jay School of Criminal Justice in New York, said the data was a product of "racism without racists." Drug task forces formed to combat the crack and heroin boom decades ago have shifted their focus to marijuana in order to maintain funding from national sources, he said.
"Once you have the apparatus, you’re not going to care what the drug is," he said.
A 2012 Star-Ledger report showed heroin, not marijuana, was the problematic drug in the three New Jersey counties with the worst arrest disparities — Hunterdon, Ocean and Monmouth.
The report also found states spent an estimated $3.61 billion enforcing marijuana possession laws in 2010 alone. In New Jersey, that figure was $127.3 million per year, a number which drew the ire of pro-marijuana advocates.
"You could build a lot of schools with that," said Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union) who introduced legislation to de-criminalize marijuana earlier this year.
Roseanne Scotti, the director of the state chapter of the Drug Policy Alliance, called the report’s findings "morally appalling and fiscally ridiculous."
"I think when you look at some of the counties like that, it’s hard to imagine or find any way to reason your way out of the fact that it could be anything other than intentional discrimination," she said. "The numbers don’t lie."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Edison Police Chief Thomas Bryan has requested an outside monitor from the prosecutor's office to help him fend off 'political interference' from Mayor Antonia Ricigliano
In a renewed eruption of tensions over control of the Edison police force, Chief Thomas Bryan has asked the Middlesex County prosecutor to appoint a monitor in the department to help him fend off what he termed rampant political interference from Mayor Antonia Ricigliano.
Bryan’s request, made in a three-page letter to Acting Prosecutor Andrew Carey, marks a rare, if not unprecedented, invitation from a police chief for outside oversight.
It also signals the extent of the gridlock and dysfunction in Edison, where rival political factions have been locked in a bitter war for several years.
"Since the mayor took office, her administration has repeatedly and vehemently obstructed my ability to implement reform initiatives, instead choosing to pander to political supporters ... and allowing those individuals to continue to conduct themselves in an unprofessional and downright malicious manner," Bryan wrote.
A monitor, Bryan added, could prevent Ricigliano from making political promotions in the waning days of her first term and could help counter the "negative organizational cultural elements within the Edison Police Department." Ricigliano is running for re-election in November.
Bryan’s letter, dated May 30, came just days after the mayor wrote her own letter to Carey, who recently replaced Bruce Kaplan as prosecutor. Ricigliano, citing a failure of leadership in the department, requested a meeting with Carey in the wake of the latest high-profile arrest of an Edison officer.
Michael Dotro, a 10-year veteran, was charged with five counts of attempted murder May 23 for allegedly setting fire to the home of Edison police Capt. Mark Anderko.
Anderko and his family escaped unharmed. Dotro remains in the Middlesex County jail in lieu of $5 million cash bail.
The Star-Ledger reported earlier this week that Bryan, with Anderko at his side, recently ordered Dotro to undergo a psychological evaluation after receiving his 11th excessive force complaint in a decade. Separately, Dotro had been accused of harassing a female clerk and beating up an elderly neighbor in Manalapan.
An additional case of misconduct emerged over the weekend, when Edison officer Alan Varady, 51, was found drinking beer at a barbecue while on duty. He was charged with driving under the influence Monday night. Varady was immediately suspended with pay.
Ricigliano did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
On Monday, when commenting about the arrest of Dotro and the suspension of Varady, she told The Star-Ledger the continuing episodes of misconduct show the "system is not working." As public safety director, she said, she also wanted monthly reports from Bryan on officer behavior.
The New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police, which backs Bryan, lashed out at the mayor Tuesday, accusing her of meddling in the department’s daily operations and "coddling" officers — even those accused of wrongdoing — who have backed her politically.
"Something does need to be done immediately. The mayor needs to let the chief run the department, and she can’t interfere every time the chief disciplines somebody," said Raymond Hayducka, the group’s president and the police chief in South Brunswick.
"It’s no secret that every time police officers disagree with something the chief does, they run right to the mayor, and she entertains them," Hayducka added. "You cannot run a police department in that fashion."
Vito Gagliardi, an attorney for the chiefs’ association, said state intervention in the police department would be "helpful" in insulating Bryan from political interference, allowing the chief to provide "reward for good behavior and accountability for bad behavior."
In response to a two-part Star-Ledger series about the department in December, the state Attorney General’s Office and the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office increased oversight of Edison’s internal affairs unit. But both the state and county have shown no interest in taking over the department altogether.
Carey, the prosecutor, said in a statement Tuesday the increased monitoring of internal affairs "has resulted in positive and beneficial results." He also confirmed he would be meeting this week with Ricigliano to discuss "relevant issues."
"However," he added, "as the mayor is well aware, her office is not allowed to get involved in the day-to-day operation of the Edison Police Department."
Edison police officer Michael Dotro allegedly used gasoline-filled water jugs to firebomb his captain's home
NEW BRUNSWICK — The Edison police officer charged with attempted murder for allegedly torching his captain’s home last month started the fire by lighting a pair of gasoline-filled water jugs on the front porch, a prosecutor said in court Friday.
The detail emerged during a bail hearing in which Middlesex County Assistant Prosecutor Thomas Mannion laid out some of the state’s evidence against Officer Michael Dotro, a 10-year veteran who authorities say was angry about a recent transfer and a forced psychological evaluation.
Dotro, Mannion said, used blue shop rags as wicks for the home-made firebombs.
An identical blue shop rag with an odor of gasoline was found in Dotro’s pickup truck when investigators executed search warrants at his Manalapan home May 23, the day of the officer’s arrest. Additional rags matching the wicks were found in Dotro’s garage, Mannion said.
The searches provided a trove of potential evidence in the case against Dotro, 35, who is charged with aggravated arson and five counts of attempted murder in the May 20 fire in Monroe Township.
Capt. Mark Anderko, his wife, his two children and his 92-year-old mother escaped without injury.
Found on the front steps of Anderko’s home, Mannion said, was a bath towel. An identical bath towel was found in Dotro’s house.
Investigators also found 1-gallon water jugs — like the ones used in the blaze — in Dotro’s laundry room and shed, the prosecutor said.
The fire was reported at 3:50 a.m. Some time before, Dotro’s pickup truck was recorded by a surveillance camera at a Manalapan Quick Chek, Mannion told Superior Court Judge Bradley Ferencz in New Brunswick. At the time, Dotro was driving in the direction of Anderko’s house.
About two weeks earlier, a surveillance camera at the same store recorded Dotro buying gas, Mannion said.
Finally, Mannion said Dotro and his wife exchanged text messages about an hour before the fire, proving the officer was "up and about" at the time.
Ferencz, having signed warrants in the case, said in court there was additional evidence not presented Friday.
"I am left with the analysis so far that there is significant likelihood, given the state’s offer, of conviction," he said.
Dotro had been held on $5 million cash bail, one of the highest bonds in Middlesex County history. Ferencz agreed to lower the bail to $2 million cash. Dotro remains behind bars.
Defense attorney Lawrence Bitterman sought $500,000 bail, arguing Dotro had no reason to flee and that "monetary conditions should not be used as punishment" or "be the result of a public outcry."
Lowering bail to $2 million, Bitterman contended, was akin to "no bail reduction."
Dotro wore green jail garb and sat next to the defense lawyer. His wife sat in the first row of observer seats behind him, flanked by several Edison police officers in plainclothes.
The Star-Ledger has previously reported that Dotro was angry at Anderko after the captain moved him from the night shift to days and ordered him to undergo a fitness-for-duty evaluation with a psychologist. That assessment, sparked by Dotro’s 11th excessive force complaint in a decade, took place four days before the fire.
In court Friday, Mannion said the transfer was "something he was not happy about." The prosecutor said Anderko also told Dotro he would be getting a "performance enhancement," a form of remedial training.
Anderko frequently handles discipline on the force. Dotro’s feelings about him were made clear shortly after the fire, Mannion said, when the president of the police union sent out an email to the executive board — on which Dotro sits — asking for contributions toward a $5,000 donation.
Mannion said Dotro responded, "Nope. That guy’s been messing with us for years and I won’t give him a dime."
Star-Ledger staff writer Mark Mueller contributed to this report.
• Possible motive emerges in Edison cop's alleged arson attack on captain's home
• Edison cop charged with attempted murder in firebomb attack on supervisor's home
Under Florida law, George Zimmerman, 29, could lawfully shoot Martin in self-defense if it was necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm.
SANFORD, Fla. — George Zimmerman's lead attorney will be walking a fine line as he tries to convince jurors that his client didn't murder Trayvon Martin: He needs to show why Zimmerman felt threatened by the African-American teenager while avoiding the appearance that either he or his client is racist.
Because there is no dispute that Zimmerman shot Martin, 17, during a fight on a rainy night in February 2012, Mark O'Mara must convince the jury that Zimmerman pulled his 9 mm handgun and fired a bullet into the Miami-area high school student's chest because he feared for his life and that the fear was caused by Martin's actions, not his race.
Jury selection begins today in the second-degree murder trial, which is expected to last about six weeks. Martin's killing drew worldwide attention as it sparked a national debate about race, equal justice under the law and gun control. If convicted, Zimmerman, who identifies himself as Hispanic, could get a life sentence.
Under Florida law, Zimmerman, 29, could lawfully shoot Martin in self-defense if it was necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm.
O'Mara has to be careful how he characterizes Martin, said Randy McClean, an Orlando-area defense attorney. "Mr. O'Mara's challenge is to show Trayvon wasn't profiled, that Zimmerman either saw something that looked suspicious or something else that caused him to make contact with Trayvon."
The challenge for prosecutors trying to get a second-degree murder conviction, meanwhile, is that they must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that while Zimmerman's actions weren't premeditated, they demonstrated a "depraved mind" that didn't consider the threat his actions had toward human life.
McClean and another Orlando defense attorney, David Hill, predicted that prosecutors will attack Zimmerman, who was employed at a mortgage risk management firm, as a frustrated, would-be police officer who had a chip on his shoulder. Zimmerman had studied criminal justice at a community college and had volunteered to run his community's neighborhood watch program.
"The state's narrative is going to be ... Zimmerman was a powerful neighborhood watchman, a wannabe officer who liked to use his authority," McCLean said.
The Feb. 26, 2012, confrontation began when Zimmerman spotted Martin, whom he did not recognize, walking in the Retreat at Twin Lakes, the gated townhome community where Zimmerman lived and the fiancee of Martin's father also resided. There had been a rash of recent break-ins at the Retreat, and Zimmerman was wary of strangers walking through the complex. He was well-known to police dispatchers for his regular calls reporting suspicious people and events.
Martin was walking back from a convenience store after buying ice tea and Skittles. It was raining, and he was wearing a hoodie.
Zimmerman called 911, got out of his vehicle and followed Martin behind the townhomes despite being told not to by a police dispatcher. "These a------s, they always get away," Zimmerman said on the call. Zimmerman, who had a concealed weapons permit, was armed.
The two then got into a struggle. Zimmerman told police he had lost sight of Martin, and that Martin circled back and attacked him as he walked back to his truck. Prosecutors say he tracked down Martin and started the fight.
Zimmerman told police Martin punched him in the nose, knocking him down, and then got on top of him and began banging Zimmerman's head on the sidewalk. Photos taken after the fight show Zimmerman with a broken nose, bruises and bloody cuts on the back of his head. He said that when Martin spotted his gun holstered around his waist under his clothes, he said, "You are going to die tonight." Zimmerman said he grabbed the gun first and fired. Martin died at the scene.
An autopsy showed Martin was shot through the heart at close range. Prosecutors claim Zimmerman was racially profiling Martin, and Martin's divorced parents have said the neighborhood watch captain was the aggressor in the fight.
"Trayvon Martin did not have a gun. Trayvon Martin did not get out of his car to chase anybody," said Benjamin Crump, the parents' attorney. "Trayvon Martin did not shoot and kill anybody."
Given the low visibility on the dark, rainy night of the shooting, few residents of the Retreat at Twin Lakes were able to give investigators a good description of what happened, and several offered conflicting accounts of who was on top of whom during the struggle.
But 911 calls made by neighbors captured cries for help during the fight and then the gunshot. Martin's parents say the cries for help were from their son, while Zimmerman's father has testified they were from his son. Voice-recognition experts could play an important role in helping jurors decide who was screaming, provided they are allowed to testify. O'Mara had raised questions about whether such prosecution experts would mislead jurors and Circuit Judge Debra Nelson has yet to rule on his concerns.
For days, the Trayvon Martin shooting received no attention beyond some small items in the local news media. Sanford police, after questioning Zimmerman, let him go and local prosecutors chose not to press charges right away.
That changed after Martin's parents hired Crump, a prominent civil rights attorney. He began complaining to the news media, accusing the police and prosecutors of letting the murderer of a black child go free, and contacting other civil rights leaders including Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton to get their support.
Those events sparked protests in Sanford and around the country, with thousands demanding that Zimmerman be prosecuted. Gov. Rick Scott appointed State Attorney Angela B. Corey from the nearby Jacksonville district to re-examine the case.
Forty-four days after Martin's death, Corey charged Zimmerman with second-degree murder and had him arrested. For the past year, Zimmerman has been free on $1 million bond and living in seclusion. His defense is being paid by private contributions through a website O'Mara set up.
Outside attorneys say the challenge for O'Mara and his colleagues will be to divorce the case's facts from the larger context of what the shooting symbolizes to some communities.
"You have to take away the controversial stuff and make it just about what Zimmerman thought, that he was scared and feared for his life," Hill said.
If his pre-trial statements are any indication, that's exactly what O'Mara will do. O'Mara earlier decided not to invoke a "stand your ground" hearing in which a judge alone would decide whether to dismiss the case or allow it to proceed to trial.
"This case, in my opinion and in my view of the facts, is a clear, straightforward self-defense case based upon the forensic evidence," O'Mara said. "With that as a premise, this case has taken on a significance well beyond the facts."
Nelson has already ruled that defense attorneys won't be able to mention Martin's past marijuana use, suspension from school and past fighting during opening statements, although Nelson left open the possibility that the defense could try again later during the trial if it could show relevance. Such a situation could arise if prosecutors attempt to portray Martin as an angelic kid.
"The trial itself is like a symphony," O'Mara said in a recent interview. "You play with those other people around you in the proper way to present the evidence. If they go down a certain path, then we may have to go down a certain path."
Jurors will want to hear from Zimmerman, but his attorneys should wait to see how their case unfolds before putting him on the stand, McClean said. It would be helpful for Zimmerman to get on the witness stand to recount his state of mind, Hill said.
"I can't see how he doesn't," Hill said. "He's the only one who can say 'I was scared for my life and here's what happened.'"
Another crucial witness will be a Miami-area female friend of Martin's who was talking to the teen by cellphone as he was walking through the Retreat at Twin Lakes followed by Zimmerman. She says Martin told her during that conversation that someone was following him and that she also heard a brief exchange between him and someone before the phone was cut off. Martin was shot shortly afterward. But O'Mara already has called into question her credibility, accusing her of lying about missing Martin's funeral because she was in the hospital.
O'Mara said he doubts he will find six jurors and four alternates who haven't heard about the case but his goal is to find jurors who haven't formed opinions. The judge ruled that potential jurors' identities will stay anonymous in an effort to protect them from harassment and public pressure during the trial. She rejected a defense request to sequester the jury candidates during jury selection.
The defense will have a better chance with the jury if its members are older, more conservative citizens who believe in the right to bear arms, said both Hill and McCLean.
"If there are African-Americans on the jury, they are going to sympathize with Trayvon Martin more," McClean said.
Prosecutors have refused to comment about the case outside the courtroom, but lead prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda indicated at a recent hearing he was well aware of the pressures the case's high profile is putting on all parties involved. Reporters from national media groups are attending the trial, and areas outside the courthouse have been designated for expected protests.
"We want to make sure this trial is tried in a courtroom and not outside a courtroom," de la Rionda said.
Police say the suspect threatened several people before shooting the man to death
SPRING VALLEY, N.Y. — Police are searching for a suspect after a fatal shooting erupted at a Rockland County birthday party.
According to WABC, police say an argument broke out at the party Sunday night in Spring Valley.
They say the suspect threatened several people before shooting the man to death.
Ramapo police are now searching for 20-year-old Otha Williams of the Bronx for questioning, WABC-7 said.
Authorities have been questioning more than a dozen witnesses.
Edison's PBA president makes an extraordinary plea for his department to be taken over, saying it is 'broken'
In an extraordinary cry for help, the president of Edison’s police union Tuesday called his department "broken" and pleaded for intervention from county or state law enforcement officials.
Sal Della Fave, president of Policemen’s Benevolent Association Local 75, said in a letter to The Star-Ledger and in an interview that politically driven infighting over power and promotions has spawned lawsuit after lawsuit and left morale on the force "at rock bottom."
Della Fave laid much of the blame on Chief Thomas Bryan, but the union president also chided Mayor Antonia Ricigliano, the township’s public safety director and a frequent critic of the chief, for making promotions "the old-fashioned way: politically."
"Unfortunately, oversight is necessary," Della Fave said. "Edison needs someone to get the police department back on track."
An official with the State Policemen’s Benevolent Association called Della Fave’s plea unprecedented, saying he could not recall a PBA chapter in New Jersey ever advocating for oversight from an outside agency.
Della Fave’s letter comes a week after Bryan asked acting Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey to appoint a monitor to insulate him from what he termed political interference from the mayor.
Ricigliano also has met with Carey, citing a failure of leadership in the department. The prosecutor declined to comment Tuesday.
The continuing drama paints Edison as one of the more dysfunctional police departments in New Jersey. The Star-Ledger published a two-part series on the force in December, documenting a history of bad behavior by some officers and a civil war that has cost taxpayers millions of dollars in legal fees and settlements.
Tensions among the factions erupted anew late last month when an officer was charged with five counts of attempted murder for allegedly setting fire to the home of a captain. The officer, Michael Dotro, remains jailed on $2 million cash bail.
Prosecutors have said Dotro was angry at the captain, Mark Anderko, for ordering him to undergo a psychological evaluation and for transferring him from nights to days. The move followed Dotro’s 11th excessive force complaint in a decade.
Another Edison officer, Alan Varady, was suspended last week after he was found to be drinking on the job. Varady was subsequently charged with driving under the influence.
Della Fave’s letter made no mention of the recent disciplinary cases.
He focused chiefly on Bryan and, to a lesser extent, Ricigliano. Della Fave elaborated on the letter in an interview, saying the fighting has stifled any hope of progress and reform.
"I would much rather the chief or the mayor take the bull by the horns, but they’re too busy fighting to get anything done," he said in the interview.
"Let’s get this bad behavior to end, and let’s make the department fair for everyone," Della Fave said. "If we can do that, we don’t need anyone from the outside to come in, but if all we’re going to do is flex our muscles on the school lot, then we need a teacher to come in and say, ‘Break it up.’"
The union president challenged the mayor and the council to pass an ordinance barring public employees from working on or contributing to political campaigns. He also pushed for an outside firm or agency to take over promotions.
"Politics is the reason for the ‘civil war’ and the lawsuits in the PD," Della Fave wrote in the letter. "Get rid of the politics, the others go away."
The stance is something of an about-face for the union, which spent heavily four years ago to secure Ricigliano’s victory as mayor. Numerous members of the union also campaigned for her at the time. Ricigliano did not return a call seeking comment.
Bryan responded forcefully to Della Fave’s letter, saying he has strived to take politics out of the police department and that the union has fought efforts to increase accountability and professionalism on the 168-member force.
"I have zero confidence in the PBA president’s leadership due to the fact he continually supports bad behavior by a faction of officers," the chief said. "When was the last time he reported bad behavior? Why do I have to hear it from the public?"
Bryan said he fully supports an ordinance barring public employees from donating to or working on political campaigns.
Asked why, then, he recently attended a $200-a-head fundraiser for Councilman and mayoral candidate Thomas Lankey, Bryan said he wanted to see the two bands performing. He said he has not and will not donate to Lankey’s campaign.
"I get along with Tom Lankey. I get along with all the council members," Bryan said. "But I don’t insert politics into the police department."
• Prosecutor outlines trove of evidence against cop in firebomb attack on captain's home
• Edison police chief seeks outside monitor, citing mayor's 'political interference'
• Possible motive emerges in Edison cop's alleged arson attack on captain's home
• Edison cop charged with attempted murder in firebomb attack on supervisor's home
• Betraying the badge: Edison police produce astonishing record of misconduct
• Law and disorder: Edison's police force plagued by infighting, lawsuits
CLEVELAND — A man accused of holding three women captive in his Cleveland home for about a decade pleaded not guilty today to hundreds of charges, including rape and kidnapping. Ariel Castro is charged with kidnapping the three women and keeping them — sometimes restrained in chains — along with a 6-year-old girl he fathered with one of them....
CLEVELAND — A man accused of holding three women captive in his Cleveland home for about a decade pleaded not guilty today to hundreds of charges, including rape and kidnapping.
Ariel Castro is charged with kidnapping the three women and keeping them — sometimes restrained in chains — along with a 6-year-old girl he fathered with one of them.
Castro, 52, didn't speak during the arraignment, which lasted less than a minute. He stood motionless, dressed in an orange prison outfit, and looked toward the floor as the plea was entered.
His attorneys planned to make a statement later this morning.
The grand jury charged Castro with two counts of aggravated murder related to one act, saying he purposely caused the unlawful termination of one of the women's pregnancies. He also was indicted on 139 counts of rape, 177 counts of kidnapping, seven counts of gross sexual imposition, three counts of felonious assault and one count of possession of criminal tools.
The 142-page indictment covers only the period from August 2002, when the first victim disappeared, to February 2007. Prosecutors say the investigation will continue and they are leaving the door open to pursuing a death penalty case against Castro.
News that the women had been found alive electrified the Cleveland area, where two of the victims were household names after years of searches, publicity and vigils. But elation soon turned to shock as allegations about their treatment began to emerge.
The indictment against Castro alleges he repeatedly restrained the women, sometimes chaining them to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or inside a van. It says one of the women tried to escape and he assaulted her with a vacuum cord around her neck.
Later, he moved them to upstairs rooms where they were kept as virtual prisoners, according to investigators.
All the while, Castro continued driving a school bus and playing bass in local bands, with fellow musicians saying they never suspected a thing. He was fired as a bus driver last fall after leaving his bus unattended for several hours.
Castro has been held on $8 million bail, which was continued. Last week he was taken off suicide prevention watch in jail. Cuyahoga County jail logs show him spending most of his time sleeping, lying on his bunk, watching TV and occasionally drawing.
Castro was arrested May 6, shortly after one of the women broke through a door and yelled to neighbors for help.
She told a police dispatcher in a dramatic 911 call: "Help me. I'm Amanda Berry. I've been kidnapped, and I've been missing for 10 years, and I'm, I'm here, I'm free now."
The women — Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight — disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. Each said they had accepted a ride from Castro, who remained friends with DeJesus' family and even attended vigils over the years marking her disappearance.
The women haven't spoken publicly since their rescue.
Berry, 27, told officers that she was forced to give birth in a plastic pool in the house so it would be easier to clean up. Berry said she, her baby and the two other women rescued with her had never been to a doctor during their captivity.
Knight, 32, said her five pregnancies ended after Castro starved her for at least two weeks and "repeatedly punched her in the stomach until she miscarried," authorities said.
She also said Castro forced her to deliver Berry's baby under threat of death if the baby died. She said that when the newborn stopped breathing, she revived her through mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
The picture of Castro as a friendly musician began to erode soon after the women were freed, as family members told of a man who terrorized his common-law wife, beating her and locking her in an apartment and the same house where the women were later kept.
Castro's two brothers were arrested the same day but were released at a hearing a few days later after it was determined they weren't aware of the activities their brother is accused of. They denounced him in later interviews.
The Associated Press does not usually identify people who may be victims of sexual assault, but the names of the three women were widely circulated by their families, friends and law enforcement authorities for years during their disappearances and after they were found.
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Jersey City-based Fundtech Holdings and Automated Data Processing Inc.of Florham Park were among the victim institutions, the U.S. Attorney's Office said
NEWARK — Federal authorities today charged eight alleged members of an international cyber crime and money laundering operation with scheming to steal millions of dollars by hacking into U.S. customer accounts at more than a dozen banks, brokerage firms and government agencies, including the Defense Department.
Jersey City-based Fundtech Holdings and Automated Data Processing Inc.of Roseland, were among the victim institutions in New Jersey, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in announcing the charges. Customers whose accounts were hacked and identities were stolen also live in New Jersey, authorities said.
The defendants are charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit identity theft, authorities said.
Prosecutors said the alleged hackers gained unauthorized access to the computer networks of the following financial institutions, both in the United States and abroad: Aon Hewitt; Automated Data Processing Inc.; Citibank; E-Trade; Electronic Payments Inc.; Fundtech Holdings; iPayment Inc.; JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.; Nordstrom Bank; PayPal; TD Ameritrade; Defense Finance and Accounting Service, which provides payment services to the U.S. Department of Defense; TIAA-CREF; USAA; and Veracity Payment Solutions Inc.
The arrested, who range in age from 31 to 49 years old and come from Massachusetts, Brooklyn, Atlanta and the Ukraine, either managed crews in their areas or helped move the fraud proceeds, authorities said.
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U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said the government’s ongoing investigation into the organization has so far identified attempts to defraud the victim companies and their customers of more than $15 million.
“Cyber criminals penetrated some of our most trusted financial institutions as part of a global scheme that stole money and identities from people in the United States,” Fishman said in a statement. He said the defendants used “stolen identities to ‘cash out’ hacked accounts in a series of internationally coordinated modern-day bank robberies.”
According to the criminal complaint, one part of the elaborate fraud involved filing fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service seeking refunds using the identifies of customers whose money had been stolen.
The defendants each face a maximum of 55 years in prison if convicted on the top charges and a fine of $750,000.
The group was expected to make an appearance today in federal court in Newark.
Attempts to reach their attorneys were unsuccessful.
Aquilla Flood, 17, was buried in her gold-tinted casket, wrapped in a glittering champagne-colored dress Watch video
IRVINGTON — When 17-year-old Aquilla Flood was gunned down last week in the bedroom of her East Orange home, it was a tragedy of stolen moments.
She was a week away from attending her senior prom and taking her turn in the spotlight as prom queen. She was two weeks from graduation, with the rich potential of her young life as a fashion guru waiting to be unfurled before her. And a month away from turning 18.
Today, a day before the school prom, friends and family gathered at Christian Pentecostal Church in Irvington not just to mourn Aquilla, but to celebrate her life.
Aquilla lay in a gold-tinted casket, wrapped in a glittering champagne-colored dress, a small tiara sat on her head.
"I think it’s beautiful," said Naimah Hicks of her niece’s tiara. "It just symbolizes everything that Aquilla is. Her memories will always live on through me and no one can take those memories or times we shared. She’s in my heart forever."
Close relatives, friends and classmates carried pink roses and balloons. They snapped pictures with their phones as her casket passed in an ornate carriage and caught a glimpse of her dress -- the dress her grandmother made for her.
"Love is stronger than death," Pastor Jerry Smith told the hundreds of mourners who gathered inside the church. "The things you remember about her, death can never take that away. Death teaches us to remember the things that matter the most. Aquilla was a very talented lady — she wasn’t an ordinary teenager, she was special in her own right."
Smith, who also said "tomorrow ain’t promised to nobody," inspired mourners to give money to Aquilla’s family during the service.
"Many people’s lives have been taken and they haven’t even been able to enjoy life," he added. "I want to tell the young people here — you can be the lesson or the learner."
Aquilla’s mother, Nicole Flood, found her daughter in her bedroom on the morning of June 4. Police arrested her ex-boyfriend Al-Muqqadin Means in Newark on Monday in connection with her death.
Flood said her daughter, a would-be fashion major at Middlesex County College, had rejected Means’ invitation to her high school prom.
Among the hundreds of mourners today were Aquilla’s friends from Campus High School, who must now prepare for the added pain of prom and graduation without their classmate.
Outgoing East Orange Mayor Robert L. Bowser, who has worked to console the community, also attended.
"She was a cheerleader for life," said Bowser, who added that the owner of Aquilla’s apartment building plans to start a foundation for teens in her honor. "Aquilla did not live long but she lived well - her smile and personality would light up this room."
And there was Aquilla’s grandmother, Anita Flood, who knelt before the casket at the front of the church before services began and delicately caressed her granddaughter’s hair before taking a place in a front pew where she was consoled by a seemingly endless stream of well-wishers.
At Aquilla’s gravesite, three doves and balloons floated into the sky.
And Aquilla’s face could be seen everywhere.
Bikers, family members and high school friends wore bandanas and T-shirts airbrushed with Aquilla’s picture.
"She went out just the way she lived," her mother, Nicole Flood, said.
"In style."
Scott Tran will serve four years in federal prison for the August 2009 incident off Cape May
The crew aboard the Alexander II said it caught 50 fish totalling 3,000 pounds off the coast of Cape May that August day in 2009, and recorded the haul in the ship’s log.
But when the Alexander II began taking on water and the Coast Guard came to the rescue, there were no fish anywhere on the 75-foot vessel. There was also little fuel, ice, food or other supplies essential for a lengthy fishing trip. The whole thing smelled.
The ship’s owner, Scott Tran, was soon charged with hiring a captain and crew to sink the boat and collect a $400,000 policy from his insurance company.
On Wednesday, Tran was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to destroy a vessel on the high seas. Sentenced in federal court in Camden, the 40-year-old from Cherry Hill will serve three years of supervised release following his jail term and must pay a total of $350,000.
Tran admitted conspiring with Manh Nguyen, 60, of Philadelphia, by hiring a captain and crew to sink the boat about 86 miles southeast of Cape May and collect the money from State National Insurance. The insurance company refused to pay and Tran filed a lawsuit to recover the money.
A major hole in the plan was that the crew just couldn’t sink the Alexander II. Part of the problem: the vessel was too light because the crew only filled it with enough fuel for a one-way trip.
After filling parts of the boat with seawater, the crew sent a distress signal to the U.S. Coast Guard and abandoned ship in a life raft, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said. Tran, who was not aboard the boat that day, admitted he communicated via email with the captain during the voyage, telling him to sink the boat. He also admitted giving Nguyen several hundred dollars in cash for the the captain and each crew member. Tran admitted he offered to pay the captain $10,000 and each crew member $2,000 to sink the boat.
Nguyen was sentenced last year to two years in prison and two crewmen, Erik James, 41, of Cape May Court House, and Christopher Martin, 41, of Cape May County, were sentenced 30 months in prison.
Tran, a chiropractor, was "very much embarrassed and ashamed about what happened," his attorney, Earl Kauffman, said Wednesday afternoon when reached by phone.
At the morning sentencing, several family and friends spoke on his behalf, explaining how Tran, who was born in Vietnam and is now a U.S. citizen, returned to his native country several times over the past decade to perform "humanitarian work," his attorney said. A Buddhist monk in whose temple tran attends also wrote a letter on his behalf.
Under the terms of the plea deal, Tran could have received as little s 2 1/2 years in prison or as many as 10 years. Kauffman believed two factors caused U.S. District Judge Renee Marie Bumb to impose a stiffer penalty than the minimum. The first he said, was the fact that Tran’s failed scheme "did put lives at risk, including the Coast Guard’s." The other was the fact that his client sued the insurance company, which the attorney acknowledged was an act of hubris.
The judge gave Tran 45 days to report to prison, his attorney said.
In three minutes — a window terrifyingly long for the victims and frustratingly short for the cops — the robbers made off with $612,841 in merchandise
FLEMINGTON — It was over in three minutes.
On Sunday, May 5, five men walked into the dimly lit gallery of Roman Jewelers in Flemington at precisely 12:22 p.m. They entered with their heads down, moving quickly and deliberately — two to the left toward the jewelry and three to the right where the store kept the high-end watches.
In a matter of seconds, the men were leaping cases and shoving handguns in the faces of the half-dozen employees inside.
"This is a holdup! Everybody on the ground!" one of the gunman shouted.
The startling scenario, a brazen and professional robbery, was one employees had trained for, but never expected to face. One employee said she was too slow in complying, so a thief sent her crashing to the floor. Another was tackled by a robber after he hurdled her counter with his gun drawn.
Over the next roughly 180 seconds, some employees were zip-tied and placed on the ground; others were forced to empty cases at gunpoint. The whole time, employees and prosecutors say, the gunmen had their eyes on two things: the goods and the clock.
In three minutes — a window terrifyingly long for the victims and frustratingly short for the cops — the robbers made off with $612,841 in merchandise, authorities said.
By reviewing surveillance footage and interviewing a half-dozen victims and investigators, The Star-Ledger has pieced together a blow-by-blow account of what Hunterdon County Prosecutor Anthony Kearns believes is the worst armed robbery in the region’s relatively docile history. It’s also a crime that has captivated this community like nothing since the murder of Michael Petrovich at TJ’s Pancake House in 1986, less than a mile away from the jewelry store.
Crime is a rarity in Flemington, a town that saw just five armed robberies in all of 2010 and 2011, and none anywhere near this magnitude. But the speed and precision of last month’s heist, and the robbers’ ability to weave through a police dragnet, have led investigators to believe the quiet town was struck by a professional crew. Law enforcement officials say the heist has rattled residents.
"This type of robbery in Hunterdon changes everything," said John Kuczynski, the prosecutor’s chief of detectives. "People do not feel safe."
RATTLED
It’s a sunny Wednesday afternoon in Hunterdon County, and the staff at Roman Jewelers on Route 12 is buzzing behind the counters, rattling off facts about gemstones and watches and wedding bands.
In the main hallway stands Sophie Shor, the store’s petite 63-year-old owner, who speaks in a maternal voice layered with a thick Russian accent. She rushes toward Kuczynski as he walks in and starts talking before the veteran detective can say hello.
There were two strange men outside in a car, she says. They looped around the parking lot more than twice, which is enough for Shor to deem them suspicious. It is, after all, just a little more than two weeks after the robbery.
Caution is the norm now at Roman Jewelers, its front door flanked by Flemington cops who have stood watch daily since the robbery.
"It’s a very dramatic and traumatic event. For the six staff members who were here the day of the robbery, I don’t think they will ever be able to forget," Shor said. "We are very suspicious about everyone."
With good reason.
Kearns and Kuczynski described the thieves as violent professionals who were ready to use their weapons as they rushed employees.
"It’s bold and brazen for them to come in at that time of day," Kearns said. "They were in uniforms. They were organized and they were very aware of the time."
In the minutes leading up to the robbery, the five men wore hard hats and milled outside a utility van in the parking lot. They looked like one of the repair crews that have popped up around the state after Hurricane Sandy, and Kuczynski said it’s doubtful anyone gave them a second glance.
They entered calmly before splitting up at the main hallway of the store.
Four of the five men wore masks, and all wore gloves. They were as fast as they were violent, said one employee who was thrown down by a thief as he leapfrogged a countertop.
"I had bruises all over my back," she said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.
Three of the men, including the one thief who showed his face, appeared to have done this before, according to Shor and the employees. With guns drawn, they forced employees to rapidly empty some of the store’s most valuable cases and safes, swiping wedding bands, diamond studs and custom watches.
"They knew exactly what they were doing," Shor said. "They knew exactly what they wanted."
Another woman was slow to react when one of the men stuck a gun in her face, deciding to put down the jewelry in her hand before complying with his order to get down.
She paid for that. The man slammed her in the back and knocked her to the carpet.
The victims said at least two of the robbers were unsure of themselves, tying up several employees before realizing they needed them to unlock cases. The video shows another thief fumbling and struggling to open four separate cases with the same key, failing each time.
DISAPPEARED
Prosecutors maintain the heist was professional. The three-minute window is a common time frame for robbers who want to get in and get out before police arrive, Kuczynski said.
Shor said the employees were trained not to trip any silent alarms or panic buttons. While that likely spared the victims from any violence, Kuczynski said it also gave the thugs a head start when Flemington police gave chase.
Several 911 calls came in from outside the store, and Kearns said a lone Flemington cruiser was in the area as the robbers fled. But that officer had to navigate the winding parking lot of the shopping complex, Kuczynski said, giving the robbers, who had parked in an area with direct access to the main roads, ample time to flee.
Witnesses later told police the crew jumped into two vehicles, a white Chrysler and a black Audi, and bolted before the officer could spot them. The thieves escaped onto Route 12 West as Hunterdon authorities issued a "BOLO," or be on the lookout, alert to area police.
State troopers became involved in the hunt in minutes, but Kearns said Flemington and the surrounding towns are flush with back roads that make it easy to disappear.
"If you know these roads, there are ways you can split off and circle right back around," Kearns said.
The cops never spotted the getaway cars.
Detective Ed DeFilippis, a prosecutor’s office spokesman, said witnesses told investigators the cars had Pennsylvania license plates but police said those reports were unconfirmed.
Kuczynski said police have several leads, but declined to discuss specifics. The thieves had no accents, according to the victims, and no discernible physical traits. The only clue as to their point of origin was a Philadelphia Eagles sticker on one of the hard hats, but that likely means nothing, Kuczynski said.
The investigation will likely span the entire East Coast, centered on the I-95 corridor, as police look for similar robberies or clues, Kuczynski said.
The prosecutor’s office is offering a $1,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest. Kearns said he believes there were additional people involved in the heist, possibly a lookout or wheel man.
But some believe the damage has already been done. The brazen jewel heist, and the realization of how little it would have taken for the robbery to turn bloody, has left the town with a sense of dread.
"They would have used (the guns) if they needed to," Kearns said. "They were armed and dangerous."
Stephen Finley, a former funeral director convicted of stealing body parts, recently found work handling the dead at an Elizabeth crematory
The state Parole Board described his crime as an “abomination.” The attorney general called him a danger to the public. Family members of his victims labeled him a ghoul.
For two years, Stephen Finley took part in a scheme to steal human tissue from the corpses that passed through his Newark funeral home.
Bones, skin, ligaments, heart valves and other body parts were secretly harvested and sold — untested for disease and without the consent of relatives — to companies in the medical transplant market.
In 2009, the state permanently barred him from working as a funeral director, stripped him of his license, and sent him to prison for three years.
But Finley, free once again, can’t seem to stay away from the dead.
He recently began working at an Elizabeth cemetery, Rosemount Memorial Park, where part of his job involved handling bodies in the crematory, The Star-Ledger found. He was let go after inquiries from the newspaper.
The disclosure that Finley worked with remains — confirmed by two New Jersey funeral home owners with detailed knowledge of his employment — has elicited fury and astonishment from victims’ relatives, who contend he shouldn’t be permitted anywhere near the deceased.
The finding also has sparked an inquiry by the state Division of Consumer Affairs, which oversees the boards that regulate funeral directors and cemeteries.
In a statement, Consumer Affairs Director Eric T. Kanefsky said the Board of Mortuary Science “permanently and unequivocally” revoked Finley’s funeral director license “based on the reprehensible nature of his crimes and the anguish he caused to the loved ones of those whose remains he desecrated.”
“Having learned that Finley may have been handling human remains in relation to work he recently performed for a cemetery and crematorium, we are now reviewing the status of that employment and Finley’s specific duties to determine whether Finley and his employer were complying with the 2009 board order or whether there may be cause for further board action,” Kanefsky said.
It’s not clear that Finley violated the law or the revocation order, which prohibits him from working in any capacity as a funeral director, including making arrangements or embalming bodies. Under New Jersey rules, crematory workers do not require a license.
But the families of Finley’s victims — along with funeral directors who regularly use Rosemount Memorial Park for cremations — said his employment there defies common sense.
“I’m just mortified to think he would have his hands on someone’s body,” said Robin Samoilow, a Roselle Park resident whose father, Albert Teufel, was violated in Finley’s Newark funeral home in 2005. “If there was a loophole that allowed him to do this after his release from prison, there should be some action to rectify the situation, because clearly this is a man who never showed remorse and is deeply disturbed.”
Samoilow also questioned why Rosemount would hire Finley given his background.
“The fact that any crematorium would want to use someone in their business with such questionable character is appalling,” she said.
Finley, 50, declined to comment for this report. The Star-Ledger photographed him at the cemetery May 30. The next day, he no longer worked there, said Michael Baratta, Rosemount’s vice president.
In a brief phone interview, Baratta defended Finley’s hiring.
“He’s a man who did his time and paid his dues and is now just looking to move on with his life,” Baratta said. “But everybody’s got their opinion.”
Baratta answered additional questions through e-mail, saying the responses were from the cemetery’s board of trustees.
Finley, he said, was hired to work on a project “for marketing purposes” because of his experience. That project was completed May 29, Baratta said. Finley was on the grounds when The Star-Ledger photographed him May 30 “to say goodbye and answer some questions we had,” the vice president said.
At no time, Baratta said, did Finley have access to human remains.
That contention is directly contradicted by the two funeral home owners, who said Finley routinely removed bodies from hearses and prepped them for cremation.
One of the funeral home owners said he was present at least four times in April and May when Finley unloaded remains in body bags and placed them in cardboard boxes for temporary storage.
The owner spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not permitted under state rules to deliver bodies to a crematory. In New Jersey, only licensed funeral directors may transport remains for “final disposition,” according to the New Jersey Mortuary Science Act, the law governing the funeral industry.
The second funeral home owner said Finley spoke openly of working with bodies in conversation. The owner also requested anonymity, citing a reluctance to become part of a state investigation.
Baratta said Finley was hired at Rosemount after cemetery personnel “made sure it was okay” with his attorney and the court. But a March 15 letter from Superior Court Judge Peter J. Vasquez to Finley’s lawyer, Alan Bowman, suggests Vasquez didn’t think it was a good idea at all. Vasquez presided over Finley’s criminal case.
“Please be advised that I believe that Mr. Finley’s proposed employment in the capacity of a Cremation Technician would be inappropriate,” Vasquez wrote in the one-paragraph letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Star-Ledger.
It’s not the first time Rosemount has come under state scrutiny. In 1996, the cemetery and its two principal operators, Louis Cicalese and Lawrence Nikola, paid a $60,000 fine after the Division of Consumer Affairs found that bodies had been buried under sidewalks and that up to nine people had been interred in one grave.
The operators also illegally reclaimed burial plots that families had purchased but not used. As part of a settlement with the state, additional counts alleging wrongdoing were dismissed.
Finley’s recent employment there proved troubling to some of Rosemount’s clients.
“He shouldn’t be working there,” said Anamaria Marquez, co-owner of LaPaz Funeral Home in the Bronx. LaPaz frequently uses Rosemount for cremations.
Marquez did not have firsthand knowledge of Finley’s job, but she had heard of the body-parts theft ring that resulted in prison for Finley and other funeral directors in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
“This is a problem for us,” Marquez said. “Families leave their loved one in our hands, and we recommend Rosemount. At the end of the day, we’re responsible.”
Finley’s association with the body parts theft ring took place in 2004 and 2005, though it did not immediately come to light. At the time, Finley owned Berardinelli Funeral Home, also known as Funeraria Santa Cruz, in Newark.
He pleaded guilty to desecrating human remains in January 2009, the same month the state revoked his funeral director’s license. Before Finley’s sentence was imposed, however, investigators found he continued to work in his funeral home in violation of the revocation.
In 2011, while already jailed on the desecration charge, he pleaded guilty to practicing mortuary science without a license. Sentenced to a total of five years for both crimes, he maxed out after three years because of good behavior credits. He was released in April of last year.
The ring’s leader, Michael Mastromarino, was sentenced to decades behind bars in New York. His attorney has said he is dying of bone cancer.
Mastromarino, a former Fort Lee dentist, paid Finley $1,000 for each body. A team of “cutters” would go to Finley’s funeral home and excise tissue for sale to national companies that supplied the transplant market, prosecutors charged.
Authorities have said 100 or more bodies were plundered for parts in Finley’s funeral home alone. In all cases, consent forms required for donation were fraudulent.
The tissue was never screened for disease, as required by law. Hundreds of lawsuits have since been filed by transplant patients who contend they were sickened by tainted tissue.
One of Finley’s victims, James Thornton Sr., had skin cancer and hepatitis C, the result of a previous transplant. Finley allowed Thornton’s skin to be taken anyway, along with bones and other parts.
Thornton’s daughter, Karen Delre, said she was disgusted and frustrated that Finley had again worked with the dead.
“He should have been banned from that industry completely,” said Delre, a Hazlet resident. “I’m sure no one in their right mind would want him to touch their loved ones’ remains after what he allowed to be done in his funeral home.”
• N.J. parole board denies release of Newark mortician who harvested body parts
• Ex-Newark funeral director in prison for stealing body parts admits to practicing without license
• Newark funeral home owner admits to stealing human remains
When federal agents arrested an Edison personal trainer last month dealing steroids to buyers across the country, it opened a window on the pipeline to China, which has become a major supplier for black market steroids and other performance enhancing drugs in this country.
NEW YORK — The brown paper package from China, sent by a company called Trendy Cosmetics, was addressed to a guy in Louisiana.
Inside was a box with an assortment of small colored bottles that looked like bath oil samples — except that some were labeled "methandrostenolone," an anabolic steroid popular with body builders.
"A needle in a haystack," remarked Wilfred Rivera, U.S. Customs and Border Protection branch chief at the International Mail Facility at John F. Kennedy International Airport. "We get 700,000 international parcels a day that we’re screening. Finding this is really like looking for a needle in a haystack."
When federal agents arrested an Edison personal trainer last month dealing steroids to buyers across the country, it opened a window on the pipeline to China — which has become a major supplier for black market performance enhancing drugs in this country.
Stoked by high demand, and fed by the relative anonymity of internet sales, the illicit sale of steroids is a booming business in the United States. And federal authorities acknowledge a lot of it gets through — most of it, they say, now being shipped from suppliers like "Trendy Cosmetics."
According to CBP statistics, China now accounts for more seizures of illicit steroids than anywhere else in the world. Last year, more than 400 pounds of steroids and other performance enhancing drugs shipped from China and Hong Kong were seized at U.S. entry ports — ten times as much as any other country.
In May, CBP agents stumbled upon Richard Gray, a personal trainer on staff at a gym in Edison, after a routine search of a parcel from China labeled "hardware products" was found to contain 110 ampules individually labeled as different types of anabolic steroids.
The package, being sent in care of a mail drop address to a business called Custom Parts, led to Gray. Inside his home, investigators said they discovered thousands of vials and containers of steroids and human growth hormone supplements in his basement, stacked on shelves like a pharmaceutical warehouse awaiting shipment.
Some were in injectable form, contained in syringe vials. Others were stored in large, gallon-sized plastic bags. Prosecutors said the drugs were being resold to customers across the country. They also said they found assorted shipping labels, packaging materials, shrink wrap and a large amount of Western Union receipts indicated wire transfers from various individuals throughout the country.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said China was turned into a virtual steroids supply house after a high-profile crackdown nearly a decade ago shut down a number of big labs in Mexico — then the major supplier of black market steroids to the United States.
The shift in supply lines became evident in 2007, officials say, when the DEA targeted 56 labs in this country that were manufacturing anabolic steroids and HGH supplements. Investigators found the labs were using raw powders that had originated in China.
More than 120 people were arrested as part of the international investigation, known as Operation Raw Deal, including Alfred Scarpa, a Sayreville, N.J., electrician who they said had produced "massive quantities" of the drugs in the basement lab. Scarpa, who later pleaded guilty, was sentenced to three years in prison.
Despite the big bust, however, China remains a steroids drug store for both "designer" compounds and knock-offs of brand name pharmaceutical products only available here by prescription, all accessible to anyone with an internet connection, officials said.
"There are labs all over the place there," said DEA spokesman Rusty Payne of China. "They produce precursor powder, kits to make steroids at home, steroid products, and many chemical derivatives. It’s unregulated there, and thus legal."
While illegal in this country without a prescription, steroids are easy to find and buy, especially with a credit card over the internet.
"The market is huge. Absolutely huge," said Don Catlin, a prominent anti-doping scientist and former director of the U.C.L.A. Olympic Analytical Laboratory. "People have not stopped using steroids."
He said it goes beyond athletes.
"There are a lot of people that use them to buff up or look a little bigger without becoming Arnold Schwarzenegger," he said.
And a lot of the product he sees here comes from China.
"You go to any website and they will lead you back to China," Catlin said. "I’ve given up on the idea that you can control it. I don’t think you can."
Shipped in small boxes or heavy duty envelopes, the packages are sometimes intercepted at the International Mail Facility, just off one of the main runways at Kennedy Airport. But not everything gets checked and a lot likely gets through.
At a tour of the facility, Rivera said CBP officers screen packages they deem suspicious, putting anything tagged through X-ray machines.
Among an assortment of recently seized packages included the box from Trendy Cosmetics, as well as a corrugated box labeled "plastic products" mailed from Dongguan, China, filled with ampules of Adropen, a testosterone blend.
At Gray’s home, agents found similar bottles of popular anabolic steroids used by some to bulk up muscles or enhance athletic performance, including mastabol, boldenone undecylenate and nandrolone, all meticulously labeled and organized in boxes and individual trays in the basement of the house. He has been charged by the U.S. Attorney’s office with conspiracy to distribute drugs.
Court records show Gray was arrested in a similar case in 2007, after Food and Drug Administration agents at Kennedy Airport intercepted a series of parcels from China containing hundreds of vials of human growth hormone addressed to Gray. He received probation in that case.
Gray remains on bail in connection with the latest charges. If convicted this time, he faces up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.
• Edison gym trainer caught dealing steroids again, shipping drugs online, feds say
• Sayreville man gets federal prison term for illegal steroid lab
Edison Mayor Antonia Ricigliano and Chief Thomas Bryan have reached agreement on efforts to remove politics from the police department
For years, politics has soaked through the Edison Police Department like a poison, dividing the force into factions, spawning costly lawsuits and embittering and demoralizing the rank-and-file.
Now, after an extraordinary two weeks in which the chief and the president of the Policemen’s Benevolent Association made separate appeals for outside help, the first meaningful reforms could be on the way.
Putting aside a long-running feud, Mayor Antonia Ricigliano and Chief Thomas Bryan have joined with the Middlesex County prosecutor in backing an ordinance that would limit political influence in the way police officers are hired and promoted.
Separately, Ricigliano late last week issued an executive order barring officers and firefighters from making contributions to candidates for political office in Edison. Members of the police and fire departments — along with their unions — have historically been a potent force in the township, spending heavily on favored candidates.
In an interview, Ricigliano said she hopes the initiatives mark a turning point for the troubled police department.
"I don’t think it’s the end-all, be-all — there’s always an evolving aspect — but I think this is a major first step in doing what needs to be done not only for the police, but for the residents of our township," the mayor said.
The renewed push for reform came after acting Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey convened an impromptu peace summit with Ricigliano and Bryan last week.
Carey declined to comment Tuesday. But in a letter to the township’s attorney Friday, he said the "discord within the department destroys morale and erodes public confidence in law enforcement in Edison."
"It is my opinion that adoption of the ordinance is the first rational step in helping to ameliorate the seemingly intractable problems that exist in the Edison Police Department," Carey wrote.
Ricigliano followed up in a letter to Council President Robert Diehl Monday, asking him to schedule a vote next month.
The ordinance was crafted several months ago with input from Ricigliano, Bryan, former Middlesex County Prosecutor Bruce Kaplan and Raymond Hayducka, president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.
It would require that new hires pass a written test unless they are already graduates of or students in New Jersey police academies.
Written tests also would be a major factor in promotions, excluding the positions of deputy chief and chief. Moreover, the tests would be administered by an outside firm, not graded within the police department. Currently, only those seeking to become sergeants must pass a test. An oral test also would be conducted by the outside firm.
PBA President Sal Della Fave, who called the department "broken" last week and chided both the chief and the mayor for fighting, said he did not have detailed knowledge of the ordinance, but approved of the move toward reform.
"I’m glad the mayor and the chief are on the same page and moving forward together," Della Fave said. "It’s a step in the right direction, as is the executive order. This is something long overdue"
He also said he hoped the mayor would allow the union to have a voice in the ordinance, though she is not required to do so.
Diehl, the council president, did not respond to a request for comment.
Councilman Wayne Mascola, who has been sharply critical of the infighting in the department, said the ordinance didn’t go far enough. He said the state Attorney General’s Office should choose the outside firm that conducts testing to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
"If you’re 100 percent fair for all involved, then the department will start rebuilding," he said.
Councilman Thomas Lankey, a candidate for mayor, said he would support the ordinance "as a first step as long as I see a longterm plan."
Political influence over promotions has been at the heart of the war raging in the department, which has been under increased scrutiny since The Star-Ledger published a two-part series about its problems in December.
The prosecutor’s office and the Attorney General’s Office have since increased controls on the internal affairs unit, requiring summaries of each investigation.
• Edison PBA president calls department 'broken,' pleads for outside intervention
• Prosecutor outlines trove of evidence against cop in firebomb attack on captain's home
• Edison police chief seeks outside monitor, citing mayor's 'political interference'
• Possible motive emerges in Edison cop's alleged arson attack on captain's home
• Edison cop charged with attempted murder in firebomb attack on supervisor's home
• Betraying the badge: Edison police produce astonishing record of misconduct
• Law and disorder: Edison's police force plagued by infighting, lawsuits
Edison police officer Michael Dotro, charged with attempted murder for allegedly setting fire to his captain's home, has been freed on $2 million bail
The Edison police officer charged with attempted murder and arson for allegedly setting fire to his captain’s home last month has been freed on $2 million cash bail.
Michael Dotro, 36, was released from the Middlesex County jail in North Brunswick about 5 p.m. Tuesday, said Jim O’Neill, a spokesman for the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office.
The release followed a hearing before Superior Court Bradley Ferencz in New Brunswick to determine the source of the cash. One of Dotro’s brothers put up $110,000, while another brother fronted $400,000, O’Neill said.
Dotro’s parents provided the remainder, or $1.49 million, the spokesman said. The family members’ names were not immediately available.
Dotro, a resident of Manalapan, was required to surrender any weapons and was ordered to remain in New Jersey. He may not visit the Edison Municipal Complex, where the police department is housed, or make contact with the victim or his family. He also was ordered to stay away from employees of the prosecutor’s office.
Dotro is charged with five counts of attempted murder and aggravated arson for allegedly setting the May 20 fire at the Monroe home of Edison police Capt. Mark Anderko, who had recently ordered Dotro to undergo a psychological evaluation and transferred him from nights to days, authorities have said.
The personnel moves followed Dotro’s 11th excessive force complaint in a decade, The Star-Ledger reported earlier this month. He also had been accused of stealing a township police car as a prank and of harassing a 25-year-old woman who works as a clerk in the department’s violations bureau, the newspaper reported.
At the time of the fire, Anderko, his wife, his two children and his 92-year-old mother were asleep in the home. They escaped without injury.
Dotro’s lawyer, Robert Norton, did not respond to a request for comment today. The officer had previously been represented by New Brunswick attorney Lawrence Bitterman.
Bitterman said he was required to withdraw from the case to avoid a conflict after the prosecutor’s office presented him with a list of potential witnesses, many of whom are Edison officers. Bitterman had represented a number of the officers in past disciplinary or criminal cases.
Staff writer Sue Epstein contributed to this report.
• Prosecutor outlines trove of evidence against cop in firebomb attack on captain's home
• Possible motive emerges in Edison cop's alleged arson attack on captain's home
• Edison cop charged with attempted murder in firebomb attack on supervisor's home
• Betraying the badge: Edison police produce astonishing record of misconduct
• Law and disorder: Edison's police force plagued by infighting, lawsuits
NEW YORK — A judge who heard prostitutes testify that a father-and-son pimp team made them feel like family cleared the two men of sex trafficking charges Wednesday. The men's supporters in the Manhattan courtroom cheered the verdict, but the gallery fell silent when Judge Ruth Pickholtz announced convictions against Vincent George Sr. and Vincent George Jr. on charges...
NEW YORK — A judge who heard prostitutes testify that a father-and-son pimp team made them feel like family cleared the two men of sex trafficking charges Wednesday.
The men's supporters in the Manhattan courtroom cheered the verdict, but the gallery fell silent when Judge Ruth Pickholtz announced convictions against Vincent George Sr. and Vincent George Jr. on charges they laundered millions of dollars through music recording and car service businesses. The pair showed no emotion aside from slight smiles as they were led back to jail in handcuffs.
George Sr., 56, and his son, 35, had faced possible 25-year terms on sex trafficking charges accusing them of abusing and manipulating the women for profit. They still could get up to 15 years at sentencing on July 8 for the money laundering conviction.
Despite the mixed verdict, District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. called the outcome a victory, as did advocates for victims of sex trafficking.
"The goal of the prosecution was to dismantle a criminal enterprise from top to bottom," Vance said. "That goal has been achieved with the Georges. ... There is no fairy tale ending for these defendants."
In a statement, the non-profit Sanctuary for Families thanked prosecutors, saying the case offered "a stark illustration of how sex traffickers operate, many times recruiting young, vulnerable girls with false promises of a more glamorous and luxurious lifestyle."
But defense attorneys, who called the women working for their clients "happy hookers," also claimed victory, adding that they planned to appeal the convictions.
The verdict "recognizes that people have free will and the right to make choices whether or not you like those choices," the son's attorney, David Epstein, said of the prostitutes.
The loving relationship between pimps and prostitutes "was vindicated," Epstein added. "It's a moral victory as well as a legal one."
Prosecutors had alleged the prostitutes made as much as $500,000 a year for the Georges but got only a few dollars a night themselves and had no bank accounts or property. The prostitutes were threatened with beatings when they didn't bring in as much money as expected or were late to check in, according to wiretap conversations played at trial.
"Bring me my (expletive) money right now and get your ass back to work," the son said to one woman.
The women painted a different picture, saying they were treated to nice cars, vacations in Florida and affection from their pimps. Some lived together as "family" in a house in Allentown, Pa., about 90 miles from New York, and drove in to the city at night to turn tricks for $300, they said.
One witness, Heather Keith, has George Jr.'s nickname, King Koby, tattooed on her neck. She testified she was a drug-addicted 19-year-old stripper from upstate. She said he moved her to Allentown and helped her beat a cocaine habit.
"I would say that I make my own choices," said Keith, now 26. "I am not a dumb person. I know what I'm doing."
Another witness, 24-year-old Desiree Ellis, dismissed allegations that George Jr. abused her, calling him a "teddy bear."
She once thought about leaving him. But at a bus station, she changed her mind and asked if she could come back to their "family." He welcomed her with open arms.
"We kissed," she said. "We made up. We had a love session."
SANFORD, Fla. — A jury of six women, five of them white and the other a minority, was picked Thursday to decide the second-degree murder trial of George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who says he shot an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, in self-defense. Prosecutors have said Zimmerman, 29, racially profiled the 17-year-old Martin as he walked back...
SANFORD, Fla. — A jury of six women, five of them white and the other a minority, was picked Thursday to decide the second-degree murder trial of George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who says he shot an unarmed black teenager, Trayvon Martin, in self-defense.
Prosecutors have said Zimmerman, 29, racially profiled the 17-year-old Martin as he walked back from a convenience store on Feb. 26, 2012, in the rain, wearing a dark hooded shirt. Zimmerman identifies himself as Hispanic.
The race and ethnicity of the minority chosen for the jury was not immediately available.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys chose the panel of six jurors after almost two weeks of jury selection. In Florida, 12 jurors are required only for criminal trials involving capital cases, when the death penalty is being considered.
Martin's shooting death and the initial decision not to charge Zimmerman led to public outrage and demonstrations around the nation, with some accusing Sanford police of failing to thoroughly investigate the shooting.
The six jurors were culled from a pool of 40 jury candidates who made it into a second round of jury questioning.
Before selecting the jurors Thursday, defense attorney Mark O'Mara explored potential jurors' views on whether they thought sympathy should play a role in deciding a case. Juror B-72, a young Hispanic man, said he wasn't affected by sympathetic people because he's never had many close relationships.
"So when a person might seem sympathetic, to me it's indifferent," he said.
O'Mara also asked the jurors about when they thought self-defense could be used. Juror H-6, a white man in his 30s, said he thought deadly force could be warranted if a person feels danger.
"I feel that if you're somewhere you're supposed to be and allowed to be, you should have the right to defend yourself," he said.
O'Mara met resistance from the judge when he tried to characterize the definition for justifiable use of deadly force.
Prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda objected multiple times during O'Mara's line of questioning, eventually leading to Judge Debra Nelson to twice read what will be the jury instruction once the final jury is selection.
"I don't want either side to give an interpretation on the law," Nelson said.
O'Mara said screening the prospective jurors for any biases or prejudices "is probably as critical if not more critical than the evidence."
"If you bring that into the courtroom, then what we can't get is a fair verdict," he said.
Investigators, who released snapshots from the home's surveillance footage, said they are looking for a bearded man who forced his way into a Cypress Street home around 10:30 a.m. Friday
MILLBURN — Authorities are searching for a man who was caught on camera during a home invasion in Millburn, where police said the owner was assaulted.
Investigators, who released snapshots from the home's surveillance footage, said they are looking for a bearded man who forced his way into a Cypress Street home around 10:30 a.m. Friday.
The man took an undetermined amount of jewelry, according to a Millburn Police Department press release.
After the home invasion, the owner was taken to an area hospital where she was treated for injuries to her face and legs, the release said.
Authorities said more information about the robbery will be released in the "near future."
Anyone with information may call the department at (973) 564-7001.
