TEANECK MAN CHARGED WITH BURGLARIZING SEVEN HOMES

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Sunday, December 16, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A04

A 20-year-old Teaneck man was being held on $35,000 bail Saturday, following his arrest the night before on charges of burglarizing seven homes.

Raphael DeJesus Diaz of 196 East Forest Ave., Teaneck, was arrested in a cordoned-off area of Sheffield and Grand avenues Friday by an officer, accompanied by a police dog, from the Bergen County Police Canine Unit.

Residents had reported two burglaries and a “suspicious person” in the area, Englewood Police Detective Robert Keane said. Police charged DeJesus with burglaries of seven homes, including the three Friday, and are holding him as chief suspect in about 30 burglaries, Keane said.

“This takes care of him, at least,” Keane said. “People in the community should be happy.

Unfortunately, there are others out there. They [the burglars] should know, with the canine unit out there, that they are going to be caught. “

Englewood police have strong evidence linking DeJesus to the burglaries, he said, although he did not elaborate.

The most recent wave of break-ins and burglaries to hit the city began in the East Hill section early in November, about a month after city police arrested a suspect in a series of burglaries in that area.

Most of the burglaries took place during the day, Keane said. County police assigned four officers from its canine unit to assist the city in the search, he said.

Physical descriptions of the suspects in the burglaries were similar, Keane said. The first sighting of a suspect was on Nov. 26 when a Linden Avenue resident saw a man inside his bedroom moments after he observed the same man ringing his doorbell.

Friday, a second floor apartment at 2080 Sheffield Ave., was broken into but the suspect did not take anything, Keane said. Shortly following this report, Englewood police received another report of a “suspicious person” coming out of an apartment at 25 East Sheffield Ave., he said.

County Police Officer Robert DiPalma, accompanied by the canine, arrested DeJesus near the site of the most recent apartments burglarized, Keane said.

Police recovered from DeJesus jewelry and coins later determined to have been stolen from 25 East Sheffield, Keane said.

Notes: Bergen page

HI-TECH LASER SNAGS SPEEDERS COPS EYE `TOTALLY ACCURATE DEVICE

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Saturday, December 15, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A03

Lead-foots and speed demons, beware.

New Jersey law-enforcement agencies are examining a laser speed-detection device that its manufacturer says will render radar detectors obsolete.

While radar emits a wide microwave beam, the new device uses a narrow, infrared laser beam that can be detected only after the target car’s speed has been measured. No longer will a motorist be able to argue,”Officer, are you sure you’ve got the right car?”

The device, made by Laser Technology Inc. of Englewood, Colo., can target a vehicle out of a group because of its narrow, 3.5-foot beam at 1,000 feet, compared with the radar-beam width of 200 to 400 feet at the same distance.

The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, several police departments from Bergen County, and one from Passaic County were at a demonstration of the device, which costs $3,625, in Fair Lawn on Friday. Earlier in the day, Mike Phippen, marketing director for the company, gave a demonstration to the state police.

“It’s amazing; it’s totally accurate,” said Oradell police Lt. Edgar Brennen. “The biggest hurdle that this thing faces is in the courts, and the fact that it has to be recognized as an accurate tool. Once the courts accept it, it will be all over.

Caption: PHOTO – ROBERT S. TOWNSEND / THE RECORD – Bergen County Police Officer Dwane Razzetti testing a new laser speed-detection gun on Friday.

2 NORTH CAROLINA MEN HELD ON GUN CHARGES AFTER CAR CHASE

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Friday, December 14, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | One Star | NEWS | Page B04

Two North Carolina men were being held Thursday in the Bergen County Jail on gun-possession charges after police arrested them following a chase from Fort Lee to Teaneck on Route 95.

County police charged Solomon Dunston, 23, of Raleigh and Paul R. Mack, 20, of Durham with two counts of possession of a loaded firearm without a permit and assault on a police officer, Detective Steve Blehl said. Dunston, who was driving, also was charged with attempting to elude police. They were being held on $10,000 bail.

The arrest occurred in the southbound lanes of Route 95 at about 9:45 p.m. Wednesday after Bergen County Police Officers Stephen Georgevich and James Giblin noticed the suspects car weaving in and out of traffic, Blehl said.

He said the suspects at first stopped. But as Georgevich reached inside the car to get a driver’s license, the driver rolled up the window and drove off, with the officer’s hand stuck in the window, Blehl said. Georgevich ran alongside the car for about 15 feet before he was able to remove his hand, Blehl said.

Georgevich was not seriously injured, Blehl said.

The ensuing chase ended at the Bogota-Teaneck line when the officers forced the car off to the roadside, Blehl said. As they approached the car, the men threw out a .25-caliber semiautomatic handgun, he said, adding that police found a loaded 12-gauge shotgun during a search of the car.

MAN WAS STRANGLED, AUTOPSY REVEALS

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Thursday, December 13, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | Four Star B | NEWS | Page B02

An elderly Bergenfield man whose son is charged with his murder was strangled by hand and with a rope or string, according to an autopsy report disclosed Wednesday. Robert Tillman, 73, was also struck about the face with a blunt object, had two broken ribs, and was missing a couple of teeth, but his death was caused by the strangulation, said Bergen County Assistant Prosecutor Sharyn Peiffer, head of homicide investigations.

Peiffer would not say what led investigators to Bruce Tillman, 31, who had lived with his father at 310 Phelps Ave. for about a month before the killing Sunday. Tillman was charged with murder Monday and was being held in the Bergen County Jail on $750,000 bail.

The criminal complaint against Tillman said undisclosed evidence found at the house led police to charge him.

Tillman and his brother, Robert Tillman Jr. of North Bergen, went to Bergenfield police Sunday night to report finding their father’s body in the house. A search of the crime scene found no sign of forced entry or robbery, Bergen County Prosecutor John J. Fahy said Monday. Robert Tillman Jr. was not charged.

Police said they believe the murder occurred about noon Sunday, following a “fierce altercation” between the father and son. The two men had bruises on their bodies, Fahy said.
Peiffer said authorities believe the elder Tillman sustained his injuries during the fight.

BURGLARY SUSPECT CAUGHT ON THE RUN

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Thursday, December 13, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | Four Star B | NEWS | Page B03

Moments after borough police dispatched officers to The Leather Warehouse on Route 4, where a burglary was in progress, a Hackensack detective arrested one of the suspects as he ran from the scene, police said.

Luigi Stalaj, 36, of 2565 Coldan Ave., the Bronx, was released from Bergen County Jail on Wednesday on $75,000 bail.

Paramus police charged Stalaj with burglary and theft, possession of stolen property, and possession of burglary tools. A judge set bail at $50,000, Chief Joseph Delaney said.

Stalaj also was charged by Hackensack police with resisting arrest, possession of stolen property, and possession of burglary tools, and bail was set at $25,000, said Hackensack Police Capt. John Aletta.

Stalaj, working with an accomplice who scaled a fence and escaped, stole 25 coats valued at $11,000, along with $7,000 in cash from a register and a bank bag at the warehouse, Delaney said. The accomplice lost a sock and a shoe when he scaled the fence, he said.

The suspects triggered an alarm when they entered through the rear of the store about 1:20 a.m. Wednesday, Delaney said.

The chief said Hackensack Detective Sgt. Michael Mordaga, driving along Anderson Street, near the city’s border with Paramus on Route 4, responded when he heard Paramus dipatching officers.

Delaney said Mordaga saw a man carrying an armful of coats dart across Coles Street in Hackensack.

Mordaga chased the man and arrested him in the back yard of a nearby home. He was assisted by Hackensack Police Officer Vincent Pedone.

Police recovered a van, two piles of coats dumped behind houses in the area, and a bag containing burglary tools, Delaney said.

HOSPITAL DEPOSIT STOLEN BY GUNMAN

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Wednesday, December 12, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | Four Star B | NEWS | Page B03

A gunman robbed a security officer for Holy Name Hospital of about $2,000 as the officer’s truck entered the driveway of National Community Bank on Cedar Lane on Tuesday afternoon, police said.

The officer was shaken up but unharmed in the robbery, which occurred about 1:30 p.m., Detective Sgt. Robert Adomilli said. Adomilli declined to identify the officer.

Theresa Setteducato, director of public relations at Holy Name Hospital, said the security officer was going to make a deposit at the bank, at 205 Cedar Lane, when he was robbed.

Setteducato declined to say how much the officer was depositing.

The security officer told police that a man approached his truck as he entered the bank’s driveway and said “Excuse me,” as if he were about to ask him for directions, Adomilli said.

The officer told police the man walked up against the truck, pointed a gun at him, and demanded that he hand over money.

Adomilli said no one saw the robbery, and the gunman escaped on foot.

A second armed robbery in Teaneck occurred at a dry-cleaning store about 3:15 p.m., but Adomilli said it appeared a different robber was responsible. The gunman stole an undetermined amount of money from a cash register at Plaza Cleaners and Artistic Tailors on Queen Anne Road, he said.

The robber locked an employee in a bathroom, Adomilli said.

Caption: PHOTO – DANIELLE P. RICHARDS/THE RECORD – Sheriff’s Officer John Murphy examining vehicle for fingerprints.

SEAL SIGHTED IN HACKENSACK RIVER; MAMMAL EXPERT SAYS TO JUST LET IT BE

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Monday, December 10, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A05

“Elvis” resurfaced Sunday on the Hackensack River.

This Elvis was not the king of rock-and-roll, but a gray-colored seal first spotted Saturday afternoon by two Fairleigh Dickinson University students. The students promptly named the seal Elvis.

The seal, about 2 1/2 feet long, perched itself atop a log Sunday afternoon, preening and sunning itself for several hours as onlookers stared at it in amazement.

Charlie Mataski, who said he worked for an environmental company that did a water-quality test on the river not too long ago, said the seal appeared to be healthy.

“Look how peaceful he is,” Mataski said. “He’s more relaxed than we are. “

Teaneck Patrolman Walter Haase said the dispatcher did not believe him when he radioed in the report that there was a seal in the water.

Seth Weisleder, 18, a freshman FDU student, said he and a roommate saw the seal about 1 p.m. Saturday. They became worried about its safety when they returned from errands three hours later and found the seal still in the water near the campus.

“We contacted the New York aquarium,” Weisleder said. “We didn’t know who else to call.”

They were told to call the Marine Mammal Stranding Center in Brigantine.

Robert Schoelkopf, director of the center, said it is not unusual for seals to turn up in New Jersey waters.

“Last year we handled 18 seals at our center and handled over 50 calls in the New Jersey area, and we expect more this year,” Schoelkopf said.

Humans pose the greatest danger to the seals, he said.

As long as the seal is free-swimming and does not appear to be in any obvious distress, it should be left in the water, Schoelkopf said. It is illegal even for the stranding center to try to capture the seal if it is not injured, he said.

Under a federal harassment law, it is illegal to throw objects at such an animal. On Sunday, a man was throwing a tennis ball at the seal.

“Direct contact is a no-no. Do not approach the animal. Keep a safe distance,” Schoelkopf said. “The animals are wild. They are not puppy dogs. “

TWO SOUGHT IN ROBBERY TRY; WOMAN PUNCHED IN FACE

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Sunday, December 9, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NORTH CENTRAL BERGEN/YOUR TOWN RECORD | Page 3

Composite drawings of suspects in an attempted robbery of a borough woman at a Discmart record store three weeks ago are being circulated in Bergen County.

Police are asking anyone with information to contact the department.

The victim, who police declined to identify, gave police a description of her alleged assailant, and an eyewitness gave police a description of a man who drove the getaway car, said River Edge Police Lt. Ron Starace, chief of the detective bureau.

The incident occurred about 12:30 p.m. Nov. 23 in the parking lot of the record store, off Route 4 east in River Edge, Starace said. The suspect allegedly ran up behind the woman, grabbed her pocketbook, and, when she resisted, punched her in the face several times and knocked her to the ground.

Starace said the woman suffered deep bruises to her face that required received medical treatment.

Police describe the man as Hispanic, in his early 20s, about 5 feet 5, slim to medium build, with dark brown hair shaved short on both sides. He was wearing a light blue jacket and a baseball cap.

The man then got into what witnesses said was a new, light tan-colored Ford Taurus occupied by three other Hispanic males and escaped, Starace said. The driver of the getaway car was described as a man, 26 to 30 years old, average height, bushy dark brown hair, thin mustache, and goatee.

Starace said similar incidents were reported in East Rutherford and Fort Lee the same day as the River Edge attack, with the same description of suspects and vehicle.

Anyone with information should contact the River Edge Police Department at 262-1233.

Caption: PHOTO – Police issued sketches showing the alleged driver of a getaway car, left, and the suspect in the attempted robbery of a borough woman.

HOSPITAL ESCAPEE IS CAPTURED; FLED IN DUMP TRUCK, THEN IN STOLEN CAR

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Sunday, December 9, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A08

A 24-year-old man who escaped from a New York mental hospital by driving a dump truck through a fence and then stole a car in Hackensack was being held in lieu of $15,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail after Atlantic City police captured him Thursday.

Hackensack police charged James Coyle of New City, N.Y., with robbery for stealing the car, and with receiving stolen property the dump truck, which he discarded at a gas station. Atlantic City police charged him with resisting arrest, driving with a revoked driver’s license, and receiving stolen property.

A spokesman for Hackensack Police Chief William Iurato said charges are also pending against Coyle in New York in the theft of the dump truck.

Coyle had been involuntarily committed to the Rockland County Psychiatric Hospital in Orangeburg, N.Y., on Dec. 3, according to a police report by Hackensack Detective Sgt. Hugh J. Farley.

Shortly after dawn Thursday, while workers from P & H Construction Co. of Wanaque were repairing the sewer system on hospital grounds, Coyle allegedly stole the dump truck, which had a trailer attached, and drove it through a fence.

At about noon that day, the truck arrived in Hackensack and pulled into the Exxon gas station at the corner of Johnson Avenue and Orchard Street, Farley said in the report. John Packard, 57, of 630 Main St. was at the pump filling his 1979 Cadillac with gas when Coyle arrived, he said.

Coyle knocked Packard to the ground, finished pumping the gas, and took off in the Cadillac, driving south on Johnson Avenue, police said. After Packard made a report of the robbery, Hackensack police alerted other police departments with a description of the car and Coyle.

At about 6:30 p.m. on the same day, Atlantic City Police Officer Donald Barker responded to a report that a patron at a gas station had refused to pay.

BABY LEFT IN CAR IN WALDWICK

MICHAEL O. ALLEN | Sunday, December 9, 1990

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A05

Two passers-by discovered a 4-month-old baby lying alone in a Jeep on a freezing night last week, and police charged the baby’s mother with neglect after they found her inside a bar.

Debra Cuneo, 23, of Greenwood Lake, N.Y., was arrested shortly after the baby was found at 2 a.m. Thursday outside the Celtic Pub. She was released Friday on $10,000 bail.

Police said the baby, a boy, had been in the Jeep for several hours. The temperature was below 30 degrees. The baby was treated at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood and released to the custody of his grandparents after police notified the state Division of Youth and Family Services, police said.