Man Sent Chilling Email, Dropped Dog Off Before Deadly Washington Township Fire: Report Man Sent Chilling Email, Dropped Dog Off Before Deadly Washington Township Fire: Report Man Sent Chilling Email, Dropped Dog Off Before Deadly Washington Township Fire: Report
Man Sent Chilling Email, Dropped Dog Off Before Deadly Washington Township Fire: Report A man who perished in a South Jersey home explosion over the weekend reportedly sent a haunting email to his ex-girlfriend just minutes before the blaze, NBC10 reports. The explosion broke out around 2 a.m. Sunday, May 12, at a home on Tranquility Court and Orion Way in Washington Township, Gloucester County, authorities said. First responders arriving at 13 Tranquility Ct. found the home fully engulfed in flames. Two bodies — a man and a woman — were recovered from the rubble, police said. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Neighbors and an ex-girlfriend, Nicole Ruiz, iden…
10-Year-Old Washington Twp Boy Found With Gunshot Wound To Head Dies, Cops Say 10-Year-Old Washington Twp Boy Found With Gunshot Wound To Head Dies, Cops Say 10-Year-Old Washington Twp Boy Found With Gunshot Wound To Head Dies, Cops Say
10-Year-Old Washington Twp Boy Found With Gunshot Wound To Head Dies, Cops Say A 10-year-old boy was fatally shot at a home in South Jersey on Tuesday afternoon, May 6, authorities said. Police responded at approximately 2:34 p.m. to a home on the 400 block of Westminster Boulevard in Washington Township (Gloucester County) for a report of a juvenile with a gunshot wound, according to Washington Township Police Chief Patrick M. Gurcsik. “Upon arrival, officers and emergency medical personnel located a 10-year-old boy with a fatal gunshot wound to the head,” Gurcsik said in a statement. “Despite lifesaving efforts, the child was tragically pronounced deceased.” The ch…
Child Porn Monitoring Device Catches Washington Man: Feds Child Porn Monitoring Device Catches Washington Man: Feds Child Porn Monitoring Device Catches Washington Man: Feds
Child Porn Monitoring Device Catches Washington Man: Feds A 53-year-old Washington Township man was charged with possessing child pornography on Thursday, April 16, authorities said. Marc Panchenko had previously been in federal custody for possessing child pornography and upon release had monitoring software installed on his phone to detect any images of child porn, US Attorney Alina Habba said. On Monday, March 3, the software alerted authorities to child porn on his phone, Habba said. A search of his phone turned up 600 videos and over 12,000 digital images, including photos of prepubescent minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, Habba sai…
Washington Twp Theater Bans Unaccompanied Boys After Chaos During 'Minecraft' Showing Washington Twp Theater Bans Unaccompanied Boys After Chaos During 'Minecraft' Showing Washington Twp Theater Bans Unaccompanied Boys After Chaos During 'Minecraft' Showing
Washington Twp Theater Bans Unaccompanied Boys After Chaos During 'Minecraft' Showing A showing of *The Minecraft Movie* at a Bergen County movie theater turned into chaos when a group of unsupervised boys disrupted the screening and vandalized the theater, management said. In a statement posted Saturday, April 5, Township Theatre in Washington Township described the behavior, believed to be from Waldwick boys, as “completely unacceptable.”  The theater confirmed it obtained video footage of the incident. “We also received multiple complaints from other moviegoers who were trying to enjoy the film with their families,” the theater said. Effective immediately, the the…
Bookkeeper Stole From Pompton Plains Catholic Church: Morris County Prosecutor Bookkeeper Stole From Pompton Plains Catholic Church: Morris County Prosecutor Bookkeeper Stole From Pompton Plains Catholic Church: Morris County Prosecutor
Bookkeeper Stole From Pompton Plains Catholic Church: Morris County Prosecutor A 60-year-old Haskell resident was arrested and charged with taking money from two Roman Catholic parishes where she worked as bookkeeper, authorities said. Between May 2018 and January 2024, Melissa Rivera stole $192,000 while employed as a bookkeeper at Our Lady of Mountain Parish in Washington Township by writing herself numerous checks from parish accounts, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll and Chief of Detectives Robert McNally said. Rivera was also creating checks at Our Lady of Good Council in Pompton Plains between May 2018 and May 2024, depositing the checks into her per…
Thief Tries To Steal BMW From Trader Joe’s Lot In Westwood, Flees On Foot: Cops Thief Tries To Steal BMW From Trader Joe’s Lot In Westwood, Flees On Foot: Cops Thief Tries To Steal BMW From Trader Joe’s Lot In Westwood, Flees On Foot: Cops
Thief Tries To Steal BMW From Trader Joe’s Lot In Westwood, Flees On Foot: Cops A brazen thief attempted to steal a 2023 BMW X7 from a Trader Joe’s parking lot in Westwood before fleeing on foot, authorities said. Westwood police responded to the Trader Joe’s at 20 Irvington St. around 12:53 p.m. on Sunday, March 16, after receiving a report of a carjacking in progress, Westwood Police Chief Michael Pontillo said. The suspect got into the BMW, which had been left with its key fob inside, and attempted to drive away, police said. When the owner confronted the thief, the vehicle struck another car in the lot. The suspect then jumped out of the car and ran away, pursued b…
Man Sexually Assaulted Teen In Hillsdale, Westwood, Wash Twp 30+ Years Ago: Prosecutor Man Sexually Assaulted Teen In Hillsdale, Westwood, Wash Twp 30+ Years Ago: Prosecutor Man Sexually Assaulted Teen In Hillsdale, Westwood, Wash Twp 30+ Years Ago: Prosecutor
Man Sexually Assaulted Teen In Hillsdale, Westwood, Wash Twp 30+ Years Ago: Prosecutor A Minnesota man is facing charges in a sexual assault case that happened nearly thirty years ago, authorities said. Jen Daniel Phykitt, formerly of Washington Township (Bergen County) sexually assaulted a child in Westwood, Washington Township, and Hillsdale multiple times between 1990 and 1991, when the child was between the ages of 13 and 16, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. As the result of an investigation, on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025, Phykitt was arrested in Dalton, MN with help from the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Department. He was charged with five counts of secon…
Raising Cane's Turnersville Grand Opening Draws Hundreds Of Chicken Lovers Raising Cane's Turnersville Grand Opening Draws Hundreds Of Chicken Lovers Raising Cane's Turnersville Grand Opening Draws Hundreds Of Chicken Lovers
Raising Cane's Turnersville Grand Opening Draws Hundreds Of Chicken Lovers Fans of chicken and sauce might have found their new home in Gloucester County. Raising Cane's celebrated its grand opening at 5241 Route 42 in Turnersville in Washington Township on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Not even the cold weather could keep hundreds of chicken finger fanatics, with several bringing chairs while they waited to go inside. At the grand opening,  20 customers won free Raising Cane's for a year and the first 100 customers who bought a combo received a commemorative hat and free Box Combo cards. This is the fast growing fried chicken franchise's sixth location in the Garde…
Search Launched For Hit, Run Driver ID'd Months After Gloucester County Crash: Cops Search Launched For Hit, Run Driver ID'd Months After Gloucester County Crash: Cops Search Launched For Hit, Run Driver ID'd Months After Gloucester County Crash: Cops
Search Launched For Hit, Run Driver ID'd Months After Gloucester County Crash: Cops A Sicklerville man is wanted by police after an arrest warrant was issued for a hit and run pedestrian crash in Gloucester County last May, authorities said. At 2:30 a.m., a Hyundai Sonata struck a pedestrian on Hurffville Crosskeys Road near Chestnut Ridge Middle School in Washington Township, police. The vehicle fled the scene while the pedestrian was taken to a nearby hospital with serious injuries, Washington Township police said.  Recently, police located the suspected Hyundai parked with a primer-painted hood and a new front bumper, indicating possible attempts to conceal da…
Man Thrown From Vehicle Dies In Gloucester County: Police Man Thrown From Vehicle Dies In Gloucester County: Police Man Thrown From Vehicle Dies In Gloucester County: Police
Man Thrown From Vehicle Dies In Gloucester County: Police A 34-year-old Washington Township man was killed after he was ejected from his vehicle on the early morning of Monday, Feb. 4, authorities said. At 2:27 a.m., officers responded to Pittman Downer Road and found Christian Benyard, who had been thrown from his vehicle, Washington Township police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Benyard was traveling northbound when his vehicle left the roadway and struck an embankment, police said. The impact caused the vehicle to become airborne before colliding with and severing a utility pole, police said. Pitman Downer Road wa…
Lodi Teacher Diana Pereira Dies, 42: 'Heaven Gained The Greatest Angel' Lodi Teacher Diana Pereira Dies, 42: 'Heaven Gained The Greatest Angel' Lodi Teacher Diana Pereira Dies, 42: 'Heaven Gained The Greatest Angel'
Lodi Teacher Diana Pereira Dies, 42: 'Heaven Gained The Greatest Angel' Diana Pereira, a longtime teacher in Lodi and Washington Township mother, died on Wednesday, Jan. 29, according to her obituary on the Di Chiara Funeral Home website. She was 42 years old. Diana worked in the Lodi School District for 18 years as a teacher at the Hilltop Elementary School. "Diana’s spirit was fulfilled when spending time with DJ, family, and friends, whether it was at the Caribbean Sea in Punta Cana, on the boat at Tice’s, or dancing to her favorite country and freestyle music," her obituary reads. "Diana had an infectious smile that would brighten any room she wal…
Suspicious Package Brings Bomb Squad To Washington Twp Neighborhood, Determined Harmless Suspicious Package Brings Bomb Squad To Washington Twp Neighborhood, Determined Harmless Suspicious Package Brings Bomb Squad To Washington Twp Neighborhood, Determined Harmless
Suspicious Package Brings Bomb Squad To Washington Twp Neighborhood, Determined Harmless A suspicious package prompted evacuations and a large emergency response to a Bergen County neighborhood on Wednesday, Jan. 22, authorities said. Police were called to the 300 block of Beech Street in Washington Township around 4:45 p.m., after a resident reported receiving an unexpected brown cardboard box from an overseas address, police said in a news release. The nature of the call led officers to close Beech Street and evacuate nearby homes. Multiple agencies responded, including the Washington Township Fire Department, Ambulance, Bergen County Sheriff’s Department, K9 Unit, Bomb Squad…