Jan. 31
At 6:05 p.m., a Kingsland Ave. homeowner near Alexander Ave. notified police that they’d arrived home and discovered the front door wide open. Police said it appeared that entry was made through the back door and that all bedrooms had been ransacked.
Feb. 1
The victim of a theft told police they went to a bank ATM at Vreeland and Franklin Aves. to withdraw $50 but, after having trouble getting money from the machine, went inside to get the money. After checking their account later, they noticed that someone had withdrawn $400 from their account. Police said the victim believed that they had failed to clear the ATM and that the person waiting in line behind them took the money out of the account. The victim described the suspected robber as a Latina woman, about 5-feet-five, about 115 pounds, wearing a wool cap and shoulder-length hair, driving an SUV parked in a bus stop.
At 11:02 a.m., police responded to a Washington Ave. car wash after getting a complaint about a car being damaged. Police said the car, only a week old, was damaged on the front driver’s side near the wheel well. No damage estimate was given.
At 11:18 a.m., an attempted break-in was reported at a Witherspoon St. property. Police said a rear basement window was ripped off and glass broken after an intruder apparently tried to get inside through a side door where pry marks were found and splintered wood seen on the ground.
At 2:15 p.m., while working a checkpoint at Bloomfield and Hawthorne Aves., police said they observed a 2006 Ford Fusion with a rejected inspection sticker. Police said the car’s owner, Farid Ferdowski, 27, of Glen Ridge, produced valid paperwork but was found to have an active warrant from North Haledon. He was later released and advised to contact North Haledon for a new court date.
At 9:48 p.m., police responded to a White Terrace location on a burglary report. The victim told police that when they arrived home, entered the front door and walked a few steps, they felt a draft, and walking towards the kitchen, the victim found the rear French door open and shattered. Police said they found pry marks on the rear door along the glass pane, leading officers to believe the intruder unlocked the door from inside and ransacked the master bedroom, leaving empty boxes on the ground in the backyard.
Feb. 2
At 11:46 a.m., police said a motor vehicle stop near Passaic Ave. and Jackson St. resulted in the arrest of Jose Lucca, 24, of Nutley, for active warrants from Clifton and Roxbury. Lucca was also issued summonses charging him with driving while suspended and maintenance of lamps. He was turned over to Clifton PD.
Feb. 3
At 9:30 a.m., police arrested Sledge Cooke, 23, of Irvington, after a motor vehicle stop on Passaic Ave. for an active warrant from Irvington. After posting bail, Cooke was released after being ticketed on a charge of driving while suspended.
At 9:39 a.m., Quacy Maynard, 30, of Orange, was arrested for an active warrant from Ocean County, police said. Maynard was released after receiving a summons charging him with driving while suspended.
At 10:32 a.m., police responded to N. Spring Garden Ave. on a report of a downed tree limb. Police said they found a large tree having fallen, blocking School Lane and lying on top of a homeowner’s fence. Police contacted township Shade Tree personnel who responded to remove the tree limb.
Police received a report of consumer fraud. The victim told police they were contacted by phone by someone purporting to be a power company representative who advised them they faced a shutoff unless they paid with a Green Dot card. The victim told police they bought two such cards, each worth $500. After being advised that one card didn’t go through, the victim tried the other card and, after later checking the balance, discovered the cards had a zero balance and that they’d paid $1,000 to a fake.
Feb. 4
At 12:14 p.m., a resident reported a case of fraud. The victim told police that four transactions involving a sale of stocks via their E-Trade account were made without their knowledge. The estimated total of shares was valued at about $3,000. E-Trade Securities is investigating, police said.
At 1:23 p.m., police arrested Ceasar Santana Jr., 28, of Nutley, after a motor vehicle stop on Darling Ave. for an active warrant from Lyndhurst. Police said they detected a strong odor of suspected raw marijuana from the interior of the vehicle and Santana allegedly told officers that he had some marijuana in the center console. Two glass jars containing a green leafy substance were taken into evidence and field-tested positive for marijuana, police said. After satisfying the Lyndhurst warrant, Santana was charged with possession of marijuana and ticketed on a charge of driving while suspended. – Ron Leir
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.