Two men are under arrest in connection with a violent assault on a man in Nutley on April 27.
Police said they responded to a Franklin Ave. location, at 1:55 a.m., on a report of a medical call. There, they said they found a man with a bloodied face, spitting up blood, claiming to be missing a tooth, and unsure what had happened. He was taken to the University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey for treatment.
However, witnesses told police they saw the man being punched repeatedly by two men who fled on foot. After getting descriptions of the alleged assailants, police said they found men matching those descriptions in the area.
Police charged the suspects, Steven Scharton, 31, of Nutley, and Dennis Harvey, 25, of Lyndhurst, with aggravated assault.
While enroute to headquarters, police said Scharton shouted profanities and racial epithets at the officers, persistently kicked the rear driver’s side window of the patrol car and, ignoring commands to stop, managed to kick out the rear window, causing it to shatter. For that, he was additionally charged with criminal mischief.
After Scharton was cuffed, police said they noticed blood on both of his hands, along with blood droplets on his boots and shirt.
Scharton was taken to Essex County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail with a 10% cash option, pending a court appearance. Harvey was released after posting bail, also pending a court date.
Here are other incidents logged for the past week in the Nutley Police blotter:
May 2
At 4:16 p.m., police responded to a Washington Ave. location on a call of a man down, possibly having a seizure. Police said they found Matthew McMahon, 26, of Clifton, lying on his side shaking and inhaling a blue can of Dust Destroyer Compressed gas duster. Police said McMahon was also carrying a bag of seven additional cans of the same item. Nutley Volunteer Emergency & Rescue Squad checked him out but he refused further medical aid. McMahon was issued summonses charging him with inhaling fumes of toxic chemicals to cause intoxification and possession of drug paraphernalia.
May 1
Two apparent scams were reported by township residents. One resident reported getting a call from someone claiming to have money from the government for the resident but then asking for checking account information so the money could be deposited. Police said upon trying to redial the number shown on caller ID, it was no longer in service. Another resident told police someone called them saying that their son was in an accident and needed several thousand dollars wired to an account to cover the cost of surgery. But police said their son was uninjured. When an attempt was made to reach the number, it was no longer a valid number, police said.
• A Franklin Ave. business owner called police at 1:59 p.m. to report an incident of shoplifting. But police said the item was returned by a juvenile suspect who was asked not to return. April 29 At 9:06 a.m., police received a report of a broken window in the unlocked fenced-in part of the parking lot of Radcliffe School. Police said they found no objects in the area but speculated that a lacrosse ball may have shattered the window. No one entered the school, they said.
April 28
A Burnett Place resident called police at 6:14 a.m. to report that the side door to their home had been damaged some time ago. Police said they noticed that the molding around the window in the door appeared to have been pulled away from the glass and they spotted two pry marks high on the door casement.
• Two incidents involving suspected criminal mischief were reported by two different residents. The first was logged at 8:51 a.m. when a Rhoda Ave. resident told police someone had thrown eggs at their vehicle during the night. Then, at 9:18 a.m., a Bayard St. resident told police that when they went outside to get their paper, they noticed egg all over the house.
• At 4:02 a.m., a Glenview Road resident reported a burglary to an auto. Police said the resident told them they heard what sounded like a car idling outside and, looking out the window, saw a tall, black man wearing a white-hooded sweatshirt, inside their vehicle. The resident told police the man then exited, enered a small, black-colored vehicle with a loud exhaust, and drove west on Glenview toward Bromley Place. Police said nothing was taken from the vehicle.
• At 12:19 a.m., police were approached by an Alexander Ave. resident who reported seeing occupants of a mid- to late-1990s SUV, possibly a Ford Explorer, parked in front of their home and throw darkcolored eggs at their vehicle.
• At 12:14 a.m., police received a call from Roosevelt Ave. residents inside their home who reported hearing a loud crashing sound – possibly fireworks – followed by a vehicle speeding away from in front of their home. Although the residents told police they didn’t see anyone when they went outside to check. But, that evening, the residents told police they noticed that the outer pane to a second-floor window over the garage was broken and that a window frame was damaged.
April 27
A Craig Place resident called police at 10:01 a.m. to report a suspected fraud. The resident told police that several transactions were made using their Groupon account which they didn’t authorize. The company was asked to investigate the charges and the resident canceled the account and credit card, police said.
• At 12:41 a.m., police went to an Entwistle Ave. location on a report of an attempted theft of a motor vehicle. The owner told police their car ignition was damaged. Police said it appeared that someone used a screwdriver to access the ignition. Nothing was believed to be missing.
—Ron Leir
