For Immediate Release: September 23, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the indictment of 61-year-old TIMOTHY C. MOOTS of Hasbrouck Heights, NJ on charges of hindering apprehension or prosecution and obstructing the administration of law. The indictment was the result of a months-long investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Ridgefield Police Department under the direction of Chief Thomas Gallagher. As previously reported, on Sunday, April 14, 2024, at approximately 7:37 p.m., the Ridgefield Police Department responded to a fatal motor-vehicle crash involving a motorized scooter at the intersection of Shaler Boulevard and Edgewater Avenue. A Chevrolet Silverado pick-up truck operated by TIMOTHY C. MOOTS collided with an electric scooter operated by 15-year-old Serenity Law of Ridgefield, NJ, who died as a result of the collision. The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Fatal Accident Investigation Unit was notified…

For Immediate Release: September 16, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 24-year-old EMELIO S. LUTCHMANSINGH of Queens, NY on charges stemming from a serious motor vehicle crash. The arrest was the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Anthony Cureton. On Sunday, September 15, 2024, at approximately 11:13 p.m., the Teaneck Police Department and Bergen County Sheriff’s Office responded to Route 4 West in the area of River Road in Teaneck for a serious motor vehicle accident. Officers arrived to find that a 2004 BMW M3, operated by EMELIO S. LUTCHMANSINGH, had been traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes of Route 4 and collided head-on with a 2020 Jeep Compass. LUTCHMANSINGH fled the scene of the collision on foot and was apprehended a short…

For Immediate Release: September 15, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 56 year-old CHRISTOPHER DEL SAVIO of Paramus, NJ on charges of endangering the welfare of a child and simple assault. The arrest is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Paramus Police Department under the direction of Chief Robert Guidetti. On Friday, September 13, 2024, the Division of Child Protection and Permanency contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit regarding alleged child abuse. An investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Paramus Police Department revealed that CHRISTOPHER DEL SAVIO physically abused two juveniles under the age of 14 years old in Paramus, NJ. As a result of the investigation, On Friday, September 13, 2024, CHRITOPHER DEL SAVIO was arrested in Paramus, NJ and charged with second-degree endangering…

For Immediate Release: September 15, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 40-year-old JUSTIN R. LATORRE of Newark, NJ on charges of assault by auto. The arrest was the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Rutherford Police Department under the direction of Chief John Russo. As previously reported, on Sunday, September 15, 2024, at approximately 5:12 a.m., the Rutherford Police Department responded to Route 3 West in reference to a motor vehicle accident. Officers arrived to find that a 2022 Ford Ranger, operated by JUSTIN R. LATORRE, had collided with a 2018 Honda HRV. While four of the occupants of the Honda were believed to be injured, ultimately only three of them were treated for varying degrees of injury. During the initial investigation, responding Rutherford police officers placed LATORRE under arrest for suspicion…

For Immediate Release: September 13, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of FRANCISCO B. VERDUGO, 22, of Upper Saddle River, NJ, who was identified as an additional suspect involved in an armed robbery investigation, which was previously announced on May 21, 2024. This additional arrest is the result of the continuing investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Allendale Police Department under the direction of Chief Michael Dillon. As previously reported, the Allendale Police Department was summoned to an apartment complex on Monday, March 25, 2024, at approximately 3:48 p.m. Upon arrival, responding officers discovered that an armed robbery occurred, and the assailant fled the scene. The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Investigations Squad was notified and responded. During a two-month investigation that followed, detectives determined the victim was confronted outside of his home by an armed…

For Immediate Release: September 11, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of JACOB L. GORTON, 26, of Salisbury, VT, on the charge of production of child sexual abuse material. The arrest is the result of a months-long investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck. In March 2024, the Paramus Police Department contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Cyber Crimes Unit regarding an alleged incident involving a juvenile who was engaged online by an unknown person on social media. An investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Paramus Police Department revealed that the unknown social media user engaged in sexual conversations with the juvenile, instructing the child to expose himself on camera and send nude photos of his intimate parts. A months-long investigation by detectives was initiated to trace the account used to communicate with the victim. Detectives…

For Immediate Release: September 4, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrests of 29-year-old JAQUIL M. BROWN of Paterson, NJ and 19-year-old SHAHEEM A. CLARK of Elmwood Park, NJ on charges stemming from an armed robbery and shooting incident. The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Lodi Police Department under the direction of Chief Donald Scorzetti. On Sunday, July 21, 2024, at approximately 11:24 pm, officers from the Lodi Police Department and the New Jersey State Police responded to an armed robbery and shooting that began in a parking lot of a business located on Route 17 in Lodi, NJ, and ended on Route 80 in Paterson, NJ. Responding officers discovered that the incident started when a group of friends exited a business on Route 17 in Lodi. After they entered…

For Immediate Release: September 4, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 24-year-old ASHLEY ELIZABETH ANN FLORES of Garfield, NJ on charges of aggravated assault, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in serious bodily injury, and assault by auto. The arrest was the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Garfield Police Department under the direction of Chief Richard Uram. On Monday, September 2, 2024, at approximately 10:20 p.m., the Garfield Police Department responded to a serious accident on Outwater Lane near Wilson Street. Responding officers located a white Jeep operated by ASHLEY ELIZABETH ANN FLORES. Officers determined that FLORES first struck a parked unoccupied vehicle and then attempted to leave the scene of the accident. While doing so, FLORES drove her car into the victim who was on foot, pinning him between…

For Immediate Release:August 30, 2024Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrests of KALI J. CARTER, 49, of East Orange, NJ, and DEMETRIUS D. HALE, 49, of Bergenfield, NJ, on various charges related to a series of burglaries across northern New Jersey. The arrests are the result of a months-long investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck. From December 2023 through June 2024, multiple jurisdictions in the New York and New Jersey area were affected by a residential burglary pattern. Early on, members of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Crime Reduction Unit, which was formed in late 2023 as a new initiative to address interjurisdictional crimes, began analyzing crime data, trends, and modus operandi of unsolved burglaries across the region. This collaborative review by law enforcement from Bergen County led investigators to believe that a large cross-section of similar incidents was all…

For Immediate Release: August 20, 2024 Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 36-year-old RENALDO W. BAXTER of Bronx, NY on charges of sexual assault, attempted aggravated sexual assault, and endangering the welfare of a child. The arrest was the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck; the Garfield Police Department under the direction of Chief Richard Uram; and The Teaneck Police Department under the direction of Chief Andrew McGurr. On Friday, May 31, 2024, the Garfield Police Department contacted the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit regarding the alleged sexual abuse of a juvenile under the age of sixteen that occurred in the past.  An investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, the Fairview Police Department and Teaneck Police Department revealed that RENALDO W. BAXTER sexually assaulted a juvenile under the age of sixteen…