December 19, 2018 • www.theobserver.com • Vol. CXXXI, No. 32
Holiday Greetings p. 16-25
COVERING: BELLEVILLE • BLOOMFIELD • EAST NEWARK • HARRISON • KEARNY • LYNDHURST • NORTH ARLINGTON • NUTLEY
Fabula-led investigation leads to KPD takedown of massive cargotheft network
MERRY CHRISTMAS
By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com
A
1½-YEAR INVESTIGATION, COMMENCED by the Kearny Police Department’s Detective Bureau under lead Det. John Fabula, has led to the arrest of numerous area men reportedly responsible for a major, $4 million-plus cargo-theft network, the KPD and Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office announced jointly on Friday, Dec. 14. On Nov. 30, 2018, the KPD arrested seven men — an eighth was arrested Dec. 6 — in connection with the network following a lengthy investigation into thefts from multiple Kearny trucking yards, Kearny Police Chief George King said. According to King: The investigation was initiated by the Kearny Police Department and the New Jersey State Police 18-months ago. In that timeframe, there had been approximately 15 thefts of tractor-trailer containers from Kearny trucking yards. The stolen merchandise included food, cosmetics, chemicals, tires, linen, clothing and liquor with an approximate total retail value of more than $4 million. The stolen merchandise was housed in warehouses in Linden, North Bergen and Clifton subsequent to the thefts. The following were arrested and charged:
See BUST, Page 30
Photo by Lisa Feorenzo
While there are, indeed, many wonderful displays of Christmas cheer in the area, this one stood out. It’s on Bogle Avenue in North Arlington, where resident Bill Woehlemann & family have prepared since September.
Exxon station robbed at gunpoint; 2 bandits make off with $1K By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com
of the station said last week. Ozzie Shahzad, in a video interview with The Observer on Friday, Dec. 14, said at 11:01 p.m., that night, he and a coworker were inside the convenience store, (Ozzie was in the back) preparing to close the gas station, when two masked and armed gunmen walked from Passaic Avenue toward the store.
O
ZZIE’S EXXON — A FUELING station with a tiny mini-mart attached at Passaic Avenue and Belgrove Drive, Kearny — was the victim of an armed robbery Tuesday, Dec. 11, at around 11 p.m., the owner
“He thought of them as regular customers and actually opened the door and let them in,” Shahzad said of his colleague. “As they entered the store, the employee walked ahead of them and while he has his back to them … a couple steps forward, the first masked man attacked him from the back, pistol whipped him and the employee fell on
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THE OBSERVER | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2018
KPD TO SENIORS: SCAMMERS By Kevin Canessa kc@theobserver.com
T
HE KEARNY POLICE Department’s Community Policing Unit has always been known for its beneficial work with the youngsters in town. But since he took over as Police Chief a little more than a year ago, George King says he directed the unit to expand its focus beyond kids.
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And as a result, COP has been delivering a seminar of sorts to senior citizens — first at St. Stephen’s Seniors gathering — and then, last week, on Thursday, Dec. 13, to the senior citizens of the Henrietta Benstead Center on Columbia Avenue — on how to avoid becoming the victims of scam artists, who often prey on the elderly. A crowd of what appeared
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to be around 100 senior citizens were on hand for the 45-minute-long presentation that preceded — what else — bingo. King himself was present for the entire program, which was delivered by Sgt. Adrianno Marques and Officer Vanessa Sevillano, both of the COP Unit. Officer Jack Grimm, who also delivers the presentation at times and
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who is also a member of the COP, was assigned to Kearny High School the day the Benstead seniors heard the presentation. Both Marques and Sevillano took turns offering incredible
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Kearny Police Officer Vanessa Sevillano speaks to senior citizens gathered at the Henrietta Benstead about the dangers of scams.
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tips for the seniors (and let’s face it, they’re of value to anyone who might one day face a scammer.) But before the presentation began,
Continued on the next page
TOWN OF KEARNY PUBLIC NOTICE The 2019 Tax List of the Town of Kearny will be open for inspection in the office of the Tax Assessor, 402 Kearny Avenue, on January 2 through January 4 of 2019, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. John A. Peneda Tax Assessor
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THE OBSERVER | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2018
03
ARE OUT THERE — SO BEWARE Continued from previous page (which The Observer livestreamed on Facebook — find it at www.theobserver.com/ facebook) King addressed those gathered. “It is very important for us to connect with our senior groups and our senior citizen community,” the chief said. “One of the things I mandated with Sgt. Marques and the community-policing unit was to get back out and do programs like this. Today, we’re going to talk about safety and scams and how you can make yourself safe from these things and it’s really educational. “These scams happen for everybody. I got several phone calls, one this morning, that I won a free cruise. And they just wanted my credit card number to secure my cruise. Well, if it’s free, then why am I giving you my credit card? So these things happen to everyone … the people who run these scams are very, very accomplished. “I was always told if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is … so follow your instincts — if it doesn’t seem right, it’s probably not. … And don’t hesitate to reach out to us — that’s what we’re here for. I hear from people and, after the fact, they say to me, ‘we didn’t want to bother you.’ You are not a bother. People contacting us — it’s never a bother, that’s what we’re here for.” Sevillano kicked off the actual presentation by reminding seniors that scams happen everywhere — including Kearny. She said the most noted scam for senior citizens involves Medicare. Since Medicare is a guarantee for those 65 and older, there’s rarely a need for insurance companies — or fraudsters — to make contact with seniors to ask for money. “Ladies and gentlemen, please — do not share your
Medicare information,” Sevillano said. “Never. These people are very knowledgeable when they contact you. Whether it’s by phone or a knock on the door or through mail, they know exactly what to say, and unfortunately, some of us may fall for it and that’s the problem here.” She also said prescription drugs and telemarketing are often the topic of scam artist phone calls. “I get 10 phone calls a day and I am not exaggerating,” Sevillano said. “I don’t pick up the phone anymore. If I don’t know the phone number, I don’t pick it up. Just this morning, I got a call from Slovenia. I have no idea and it’s the weirdest number. I had another one from Idaho — I don’t know these numbers.” Among the methods used in these kinds of scams, Sevillano noted: • Scammers will call and say there’s a big amount of money to be split if you’ll make a goodfaith payment first. This does not happen, she says, in reality — if you’ve won a contest, or money, you’d never have to pay to play. • The fake accident ploy — your grandson is in the hospital and needs money — and all you have to do to help is wire it by Western Union or MoneyGram or buy a Green Dot Money Pak. Never allow this to happen, she says. Call relatives to confirm whether they’re in hospital. Chances are they aren’t. • The charity scam — this often happens after natural disasters, she says, as was the case following Super Storm Sandy. If you’re called to donate to a charity, chances are it’s a scam. Never give your personal information to the caller — especially credit card numbers. The presentation moved on with information about Internet fraud, from Marques. He says if one gets an Internet-
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donation request, it’s best to ask for something to be sent in the mail first for verification purposes. Marques also said he, himself, gets emails all the time from “companies” telling him he owes them money. Sometimes, the emails look very real, but often, if you look close enough, you’ll discover misspellings, grammatical errors and the like. You also
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won’t be addressed by name, and that’s a sure sign you’re about to be scammed if you proceed. “If I owe something, they’re going to contact me through the mail,” Marques said. “The IRS will never contact you through the phone (or online) to pay anything. They’ll contact you through the mail — they want documentation. Don’t click on every email
you get. If it doesn’t look right, don’t do it.” There were many other potential scams discussed at the presentation. We invite you to visit www.TheObserver.com to view photos of all the slides from the COP’s presentation. If you don’t have access to the Internet, we encourage you to ask someone who does — these tips will ensure you never fall prey to these scammers.
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