TWO ARE SOUGHT IN GUN ASSAULT; INCIDENT LEAVES 2 WOMEN HURT

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Friday, August 30, 1991

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

Arrie Moore of 60 Newman St. and the gunman whom Moore allegedly instructed to kill Charles Reyes of 147 Sherman Ave., Teaneck are wanted on two counts of attempted murder, police Capt. John Aletta said Thursday.

Reyes and Theodore Bolden, 18, of 280 American Legion Drive, Hackensack, had arrived at the parking lot of Bolden’s apartment building at 2:35 a.m. Wednesday when the incident occurred. Lisa R. Manago, 21, of 77 Maple Ave., Hackensack, and a friend had driven the two men there, police said.

Moore and the gunman confronted the two men in the parking lot. According to police, Moore told the gunman to kill Reyes.

Reyes and Bolden both ran off when the gunman removed an automatic handgun from his waistband and fired. They were not hit by the gunshot, Aletta said. The gunman then fired at Manago’s car, and it crashed into a tree, he added. Moore and the gunman then ran toward Central Avenue, and have not been seen since, Aletta said.

Manago’s head hit the steering wheel when the car struck the tree, Aletta said. Bullet fragments struck Anita M. Powell, 23, of 41 E. Forest Ave., Englewood, a passenger in the car, on the left arm, he said. She also had cuts on her right foot, head, and chin.

Aletta said the women were taken to the Hackensack Medical Center. Hospital officials said they had no record of their being admitted.

The victims knew the gunman but not his name, Aletta said. Although it was unclear what caused the shooting, he said, they all knew each other.

Keywords: HACKENSACK; WEAPON; ASSAULT; SHOOTING

TWO ARE SOUGHT IN GUN ASSAULT; INCIDENT LEAVES 2 WOMEN HURT

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Friday, August 30, 1991

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

A 20-year-old city man and an unidentified gunman are being sought for shooting at four people Wednesday, two of whom were injured when a gunshot caused the driver of a car to crash into a tree, police said.
Arrie Moore of 60 Newman St. and the gunman whom Moore allegedly instructed to kill Charles Reyes of 147 Sherman Ave., Teaneck are wanted on two counts of attempted murder, police Capt. John Aletta said Thursday.
Reyes and Theodore Bolden, 18, of 280 American Legion Drive, Hackensack, had arrived at the parking lot of Bolden’s apartment building at 2:35 a.m. Wednesday when the incident occurred. Lisa R. Manago, 21, of 77 Maple Ave., Hackensack, and a friend had driven the two men there, police said.
Moore and the gunman confronted the two men in the parking lot. According to police, Moore told the gunman to kill Reyes.
Reyes and Bolden both ran off when the gunman removed an automatic handgun from his waistband and fired. They were not hit by the gunshot, Aletta said. The gunman then fired at Manago’s car, and it crashed into a tree, he added. Moore and the gunman then ran toward Central Avenue, and have not been seen since, Aletta said.
Manago’s head hit the steering wheel when the car struck the tree, Aletta said. Bullet fragments struck Anita M. Powell, 23, of 41 E. Forest Ave., Englewood, a passenger in the car, on the left arm, he said. She also had cuts on her right foot, head, and chin.
Aletta said the women were taken to the Hackensack Medical Center. Hospital officials said they had no record of their being admitted.
The victims knew the gunman but not his name, Aletta said. Although it was unclear what caused the shooting, he said, they all knew each other.

Keywords: HACKENSACK; WEAPON; ASSAULT; SHOOTING

MAN, 23, FATALLY SHOT OUTSIDE HIS HOME

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Thursday, August 22, 1991

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

A 23-year-old man was fatally shot in front of his home Tuesday night by a man who had come to his door asking for water for his car radiator, officials said.
Sergio Novo died at 3:55 a.m. in the surgical intensive care unit of University Hospital in Newark of a gunshot wound to the head, a hospital spokesman said.
Investigators do not know the motive for the shooting, nor do they have a suspect, said Bergen County First Assistant Prosecutor Paul Brickfield. Authorities do not believe robbery was a motive, he added.
“We are actively investigating his movements over the last few days and his associations and activities to try to come up with who might have had a motive to shoot him, or if this was a random activity,” Brickfield said.
Shortly before 10 p.m. Tuesday, Brickfield said, an unidentified man knocked on the door at 30 Truman Road, where Novo lived with his parents and grandmother. Novo went outside with a pitcher of water for the man, who had requested it for his car radiator.
Shortly afterward, Novo’s family and neighbors heard a “metallic noise and the sound of a car screeching,” Brickfield said. A neighbor went outside and found Novo lying on the street.
Brickfield said witnesses saw a late-model, four-door car, blue or black, possibly a Buick Century or Electra, stopped in the middle of Truman Road.
On Wednesday afternoon, John Penetra, whose son Luis was a friend of the victim, went to visit Novo’s family at their single-family home at the corner of Halsey Place and Truman Road. No one answered the door.
Penetra had heard about the shooting and wanted to find out if it were true.
“Sergio, he’s a beautiful man,” Penetra said in heavily accented English. “What a shame. I can’t believe this.”
He spoke in Spanish with a woman on Halsey Place; she told him no one had seen the shooting but that afterward everyone had come out of their homes.
Other neighbors, including a woman who said Novo was “a nice young fellow,” declined to comment or to be identified.
Novo had been a New Jersey Bell cable installer for the past 16 months and was a U.S. Navy veteran, officials said.
The shooting is being investigated by North Arlington police, the homicide squad of the Prosecutor’s Office, and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Department.
Anyone with information is asked to call the North Arlington police at 991-4400 or the homicide squad at 646-2300.

Keywords: NORTH ARLINGTON; SHOOTING; DEATH; MURDER

COP’S GUN GOES OFF; TEENAGER HIT IN ARM

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Tuesday, August 20, 1991

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page B03

A state trooper wounded a Bronx teenager in the arm Sunday when his service gun went off accidentally during a traffic stop, officials said.
Louis Mancuso, the 17-year-old passenger in a car stopped for alleged speeding, was in fair condition at Meadowlands Hospital Medical Center in Secaucus, a hospital spokesman said Monday.
Trooper Joseph Genova, a three-year veteran of the state police, was not criminally negligent in the shooting, Bergen County First Assistant Prosecutor Paul Brickfield said Monday.
“Our conclusion at this point is that it was an accidental discharge of the weapon,” Brickfield said.
The incident occurred about 8:15 a.m. Sunday in the northbound lanes of the New Jersey Turnpike in East Rutherford, said Lt. William Hillis, a state police spokesman.
Genova, on patrol in an unmarked car, clocked a 1990 Nissan 300 ZX driven by Vincent Gaudio, 18, of the Bronx at 31 mph over the 55 mph speed limit, police said.
Hillis said Genova, 23, saw a box of ammunition in an open glove compartment while examining Gaudio’s driver’s license.
“He ordered the driver to step out of the car,” Hillis said. “The passenger was ordered to place his hands on the dash. The passenger did not comply, and was again instructed to place his hands on the dash. He made a movement toward the glove box.
“The trooper, fearing a weapon may be in the glove box, drew his service weapon, and the weapon accidentally discharged and struck the passenger in the right bicep.”
No weapon was found in the car.

Keywords: EAST RUTHERFORD; POLICE; ACCIDENT; WEAPON; SHOOTING; YOUTH

PA COP SHOOTS HUDSON MAN; INCIDENT FOLLOWS CHASE IN TUNNEL

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Saturday, August 3, 1991

The Record (New Jersey) | Two Star B | NEWS | Page A03

A 26-year-old North Bergen man was reported in critical condition following surgery Friday for a gunshot wound suffered in a police chase that ended in the Lincoln Tunnel, authorities said.
Authorities said Brian T. Powers of 7110 Madison St. was shot in the head when he drove his pickup truck toward a police officer after leading police on a chase through the tunnel from Manhattan. The chase and the ensuing gunfire caused the tunnel’s center tube to be closed to westbound traffic from 11 p.m. Thursday until 4:30 a.m. Friday, said D. Joy Faber, a Port Authority spokeswoman.
The Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office will charge Powers with several offenses, including aggravated assault on a police officer, assault, eluding police, and reckless endangerment, Faber said.
The incident began at about 10:45 p.m. Thursday when a Manhattan patrolman observed Powers, driving a 1989 Ford pickup truck, run a red light at 23rd Street and 11th Avenue and then drive along the sidewalk, Faber said.
Powers did not heed the patrolman’s signal that he pull over and was pursued by marked and unmarked New York City police cars as well as a car of the New York Transit Authority police, the spokeswoman said. Powers went onto Roadway A, into the westbound center tube of the tunnel, striking as many as six cars during the chase, Faber said.
Manhattan police got out of their cars and ran toward Powers after a bus driver ahead of the chase angled his vehicle across the roadway to block Powers path. Port Authority Police Officer Joseph Audino fired four shots, one of which struck Powers as he gunned his truck toward the officer, Faber said.
Powers was being treated at St. Vincent’s Hospital and Medical Center in Manhattan. Audino, a 12-year veteran, and another Port Authority police officer were taken to St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center in Manhattan for observation and were released, Faber said.

Keywords: NORTH BERGEN; SHOOTING; TUNNEL; POLICE

SUSPECT SHOOTS HIMSELF; WAS CORNERED AFTER HOLDUP TRY, COPS SAY

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Saturday, June 29, 1991

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

A man who tried to hold up a fast-food restaurant was in critical condition at The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood Friday, the victim of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head after the robbery attempt went awry, authorities said.
The man, whom police have not been able to identify, tried to rob the Roy Rogers Family Restaurant at 31 Godwin Ave. in Midland Park at about 12:40 a.m. Friday, said Midland Park Police Chief Thomas Monarque.
About 40 minutes later, the suspect rather than surrender to Ridgewood Police Sgt. Richard Maier and three Glen Rock police officers who had him cornered in the driveway of a Lincoln Avenue home pointed his gun at Maier briefly, then to his own right temple and pulled the trigger, Monarque said.
The incident started at about 11:30 p.m. Thursday when the man, clad in a Roy Rogers uniform, knocked on the door and asked to be let in to use the phone, Monarque said. He claimed to have car trouble.
“They did not let him in,” Monarque said. “About an hour later, when they were all leaving the restaurant property, they noticed this person still loitering around the restaurant.”
The suspect waited until all the vehicles, except for the manager’s van, had pulled out of the parking lot, Monarque said. He then approached the manager, took a gun out of his waistband, and ordered the manager out of his van, telling him to go back into the restaurant for money, Monarque said. However, the manager stalled.
The suspect at one point aimed the gun at the manager, whom Monarque declined to identify, then turned away at the last minute and fired in the direction of the van but did not hit it.
The other employees returned to the parking lot when they realized the manager wasn’t driving behind them, the chief said. The suspect fled on foot without any money when he saw the employees.
About 1:20 a.m., Ridgewood and Glen Rock police responded to a report of a hitchhiker on Lincoln Avenue fitting the description of the suspect, Monarque said.

Keywords: RIDGEWOOD; ROBBERY; SHOOTING; MIDLAND PARK; RESTAURANT

KIDNAPPED MAN’S BODY FOUND

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Saturday, June 15, 1991

The Record (New Jersey) | All Editions | NEWS | Page A01

A 55-year-old Fort Lee man kidnapped earlier this week was found shot to death in the trunk of his car at LaGuardia Airport, authorities said.
Ralph DeSimone Jr. of 1516 10th St. was last seen leaving Brushless Car Wash at 1620 Bergen Blvd., where he was a manager, about 3 p.m. Wednesday, Bergen County Prosecutor John J. Fahy said. His family received a call demanding $150,000 ransom later that afternoon.
DeSimone, whose body was found late Thursday afternoon, was shot three times in the head and twice in the back, authorities said. He was hog-tied and had a plastic bag over his head.
The FBI is investigating whether DeSimone was involved with organized crime, Special Agent William Tonkin said. The Associated Press reported that New York police said DeSimone was a Gambino family associate.
“The motivation for the kidnapping is not known yet,” Tonkin said. “There are several avenues of investigation. Certainly, an organized-crime link will be pursued.” DeSimone had served a 10-year sentence, beginning in 1976, on federal drug charges, authorities said.
No witnesses to the kidnapping have come forward, Fort Lee Police Chief John Orso said. The ransom call came into the car wash, owned by DeSimone’s son, Anthony, about 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, Fahy said.
“We’ve got Ralph, and if you want to see him alive, come up with $150,000,” Fahy said a male voice told a car wash employee.
The family waited in vain for information on where to pay the ransom, Orso said. They called Fort Lee police at about 9:30 p.m. to report the kidnapping and the ransom demand, he added.
An FBI all-points bulletin led Port Authority police to DeSimone’s white-and-red 1984 Oldsmobile Cutlass in a long-term parking lot at the airport at about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, a New York City police spokesman said.

Keywords: FORT LEE; MAN; KIDNAPPING; VICTIM; SHOOTING; MURDER; RALPH DeSIMONE JR

FORMER RIDGEWOOD MAN IS SLAIN IN VERMONT VICTIM OF FRIEND’S EX-LOVER

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Sunday, May 12, 1991

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

A 26-year-old former Ridgewood resident who moved to Vermont because of his love of skiing and the outdoors was hunted down and killed by the ex-boyfriend of a woman with whom he was friendly, authorities said Saturday.
Jonathan D. Herz, a graduate of Ramapo High School in Franklin Lakes, was shot in the head before dawn Thursday outside his house in Johnson, Vt., said Lamoille County Deputy Sheriff Jeff Parry.
Herz was an unlucky bystander in Randy Manosh and Muriel McMahon’s troubled relationship. Authorities said Manosh also killed McMahon’s roommate, Nancy Lowe, who was shot in the head with a .22-caliber revolver while she slept. Manosh later committed suicide, they said.
Parry declined to comment on the relationship between Herz and McMahon, 30.
Authorities gave the following account:
Manosh, 32, went looking for McMahon about 1 a.m. at her Morrisville, Vt., residence and, not finding her, killed Lowe. Upon learning McMahon was with a friend in Johnson, Manosh hitchhiked there.
Manosh tracked McMahon to Herz’s residence, a camp at the end of a logging road, surrounded by pastures and maple trees. In a house filled with family photos and outdoor gear, Herz was killed with a single shot to the head about 1:30 a.m. Manosh dragged the landscaper’s body to the back yard, where he killed Herz’s dog, and then went after his ex-girlfriend, police said.
McMahon ran screaming through the woods to the nearest mobile home and summoned help. Parry said that while officers were interviewing McMahon, Manosh sneaked behind the mobile home and shot her through the kitchen window. He then fatally shot himself.
Manosh, the son of a prominent Vermont developer and nephew of Lamoille County Sheriff Gardner Manosh, had an extensive arrest record, including his fourth for drunken driving the week before the shootings.
McMahon, who was in critical condition from a head wound, had lived with Manosh as recently as November.
Surviving Herz are his father, Peter; his mother, Anne Bean Herz; and two brothers, Mark and Peter.
A family friend reached in Vermont said of Herz, “He was a wonderful boy. He was warm. He was full of life, a good friend, and good helpmate. He was all the things that you want your son to grow up to be.”

Keywords: RIDGEWOOD; MURDER; VERMONT; SHOOTING; JONATHAN D. HERZ

Notes: Bergen page

FORMER RIDGEWOOD MAN IS SLAIN IN VERMONT; VICTIM OF FRIEND’S EX-LOVER

By Michael O. Allen, Record Staff Writer | Sunday, May 12, 1991

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

Keywords: RIDGEWOOD; MURDER; VERMONT; SHOOTING; JONATHAN D. HERZ

Notes: Bergen page

VANDALISM INCIDENTS PROBED IN TEANECK

MICHAEL O. ALLEN | Saturday, April 13, 1991

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

Township police are investigating five incidents of vandalism along Teaneck Road in which windows at two businesses, a private residence, and the Bryant School were broken Thursday night.
In the first incident, about 5:30 p.m., a woman reported that someone threw a rock through the passenger side window of her car parked on Sherman Avenue, near Teaneck Road.
The vandalism occurred in the wake of an impromptu march Wednesday by students marking the first anniversary of the death of Phillip C. Pannell, a black 16-year-old who was shot by a white township police officer. The window of a police cruiser was shattered.

Keywords: TEANECK; DEMONSTRATION; ANNIVERSARY; VANDALISM; POLICE; SHOOTING; YOUTH; DEATH