At 7 a.m. last Wednesday, July 17, the Kearny Police Department logged its 15,000th job for 2013.
By 7 a.m., July 18, the tally was 15,106.
That represents more than 100 calls for aid in a 24-hour period, and during one of the hottest 24 hours of the year.
Don’t fret. We’re not going to list all the reports here. Suffice it to say, they ran the gamut from burglar alarms going off to disorderly conduct to medical emergencies —many heat-related –– to motor vehicle offenses/accidents, to criminal mischief. Etc.
Along with one bizarre threat to hold a bicycle hostage. Not a bicyclist. A bicycle.
At 5 p.m., July 17 – nearly midway through the hectic span –Officer Chris Levchak was on patrol on Belgrove Drive near Washington School when he was alerted by a resident that a group of youths had just stolen two bikes from their property.
Levchak spotted two teenagers who were riding bikes on Highland Ave., who ignored his request to stop and who attempted to elude him, police said. He caught them at Wilson Ave. and Belgrove. The victim and witnesses to the theft came to the scene and identified one of the bicycles as having been stolen. Taken into custody were two Newark youths, aged 16 and 17, both of whom were charged with theft, defiant trespass and conspiracy. The older teen also was charged with possession of burglary tools after bolt cutters—like those used to sever the bikes’ locks—were found in his backpack, police said.
The two were taken to headquarters for processing, and their parents were notified. But that still left one bike missing.
At 7 p.m., Officer Jay Ward stopped a group of cyclists at Passaic Ave. and Belgrove Drive. They included a 19-year-old Newark female, Nyasia Wheeler, who, when confronted, reportedly admitted the bike she was riding had been stolen.
However, according to Police Chief John Dowie, Wheeler told Ward she would not surrender the bicycle until her brother—one of those arrested earlier—was released. Ward informed her “that we do not conduct business in that manner,” Dowie said, and placed her under arrest for receiving stolen property. Brother and sister were reunited at HQ.
Other recent reports on the blotter included the following:
July 12
At 4:30 p.m., members of the Vice Squad took into custody Brian Sudziarski, 36, of Kearny, at Patterson St. and Alexander Ave. on an outstanding theft warrant from Bloomfield. He was processed at HQ , and Bloomfield authorities were notified.
At 10:30 p.m., Officer Dean Gasser was on patrol at Devon St. and Bergen Ave. when he heard “the unmistakable sound of a collision” on Bergen, Dowie said. The officer reportedly detected a strong odor of alcohol on one of the two drivers and also discovered that the man’s license was suspended. Given an Alcotest at HQ and charged with careless driving, DWI and driving while suspended was 39-year-old Kearny resident Michael Jatczyszyn.
July 13
Officer Jay Ward and Sgt. Mike Ryan responded to a report of a dispute at 2:20 p.m. at a deli on the Belleville Pike, where one customer allegedly was attempting to incite at altercation with another. The alleged aggressor gave Ward two different names, one of which belonged to a man wanted by Newark, police said. When informed of this, he reportedly began to flail at Ward but was subdued and cuffed by both cops. Charged with resisting arrest was Robert Austin, 44, of North Arlington, who police said, was the individual sought on the Newark warrant. Bail was set at $1,000 plus the $500 on the warrant.
July 16
At 3 p.m., some good neighbors on Madison Ave. notified police after they noticed a door ajar on a home whose owners were away. Officer Giovanni Rodriguez determined that a burglary had been committed, and Det. John Plaugic is conducting the follow-up investigation.
The Vice Squad was conducting surveillance on Oakwood Ave. at 7 p.m. when they observed what appeared to be a hand-to-hand drug transaction. This was confirmed, police said, and the alleged customer, Adam Motichka, 22, of Kearny, was charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. The alleged seller, Michael Boguszewski, 21, of Kearny, was arrested for distribution of pot and distribution within 500 feet of a playground.
July 17
At 10 a.m., Officer Peter Blair, utilizing a license plate reader at Schuyler and Garfield Aves., got a hit on a suspended registration. The driver, Theresa Carter, 55, of Roselle, also turned out to have a suspended license – and she was wanted on a $2,500 warrant out of Woodbridge, police said. She was charged with MV violations and taken to HQ , where Woodbridge police were contacted to take her into custody.
July 18
At 11 a.m., Officer T.J. Hernandez was dispatched to the 300 block of Davis Ave. on a call from a concerned citizen about an individual apparently in distress in a motor vehicle. Sitting behind the wheel, the motor running, was a reportedly incoherent, sweat-drenched Carlos Crincev, 33, of Kearny. (You may recall Crincev from last week’s blotter, in which he appeared three times, having thrice been arrested for allegedly “huffing” – inhaling the contents of an aerosol can – and DWI.) Police said that this time, Hernandez also found a 7 oz. aerosol container on the driver’s seat.
Due to Crincev’s physical condition, police said, he was taken to Clara Maass Medical Center, where he was treated and released back into custody.
He was again charged with DWI, possession and use of a toxic chemical for the purpose of intoxication. Bail was set at $25,000 –with no 10% option—and Crincev was remanded to the Hudson County Jail.
At 6 p.m., the Vice Squad conducted a field inquiry on Washington Ave. of an individual believed to be in possession of drugs. Police said he turned over two folds of suspected heroin, the glassine envelopes stamped “Satan.” Charged with possession of the drug and paraphernalia was George Sousa, 28, of Kearny.
–Karen Zautyk
