This section is based on facts provided to Pascack Press weekly by neighborhood police departments. Due to pending court appearances and other variations, the following information should be read in “press time” context.
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PARK RIDGE
Hillsdale woman owns up to ‘some weed,’ is arrested
A Hillsdale woman, 21, was cited for maintenance of lamps, being an unlicensed driver, possession of marijuana under 50 grams, and possession of narcotics paraphernalia following a Jan. 30 evening traffic stop on Pascack Road.
The driver was stopped over a faulty passenger side headlight. In speaking with her, the officer smelled raw marijuana emanating from within her Chrysler Sebring.
The driver provided a passport and proof of insurance, saying her Colorado license was expired. The car bore Maine registration.
She admitted to having “some weed” in the car, which officers found on a search. She was arrested and has a court date of Feb. 21.
Warning on noise not heeded, tree worker gets complaint summons
An officer on patrol on the morning of Jan. 31 saw tree workers performing work at 7:30 a.m. He asked the workers to stop work until 8, as per the borough noise ordinance.
The officer left and returned, finding work had not stopped. He issued the truck owner, a Norwood resident who was up in the bucket trimming trees, a special complaint summons.
Car owner refuses search; K9 called in and finds heroin materials
Police stopped a car on Feb. 3 at 10:27 p.m. at the Acme lot after observing the driver in traffic using a handheld device.
The driver, a 49-year-old Mahwah man, and his passenger, a 30-year-old Kenoza Lake, New York man, were observed to be acting nervously and told inconsistent stories about where they had come from and where they were going.
During questioning, the passenger reportedly was vigorously shaking his leg and avoiding eye contact.
Asked if there was anything illegal in the car, the driver said, “There shouldn’t be, but it’s an old car.”
The officer called for additional units.
In having the occupants of the car step outside, police found a bottle of Smirnoff vodka in plain view in the driver’s door compartment. The driver admitted it was his.
The passenger, who owned the vehicle, was asked for permission to search the car, and he refused. Police sent for a Bergen County Sheriff’s Office K9 unit.
While waiting, the car’s occupants told police they were afraid of getting into more trouble as they both have a lengthy history involving controlled dangerous substances. The car owner said he couldn’t afford to get into more trouble.
Based on the K9 unit’s findings, a search of the car ensued, turning up multiple empty wax folds, 18 hypodermic needles, a metal spoon, and steel wool, all in a backpack.
The car owner said it was all his, said he had no medical cause to have them, and that they were for heroin.
He was arrested. The driver’s driving privileges were found to be suspended.
Offenses are given as use of cell phone while driving (state), consumption or possession of alcohol in a motor vehicle, possession of narcotics paraphernalia, and possession of hypodermic syringe.
The summonses are answerable Feb. 21 in Pascack Joint Municipal Court.
License plate check returns suspended registration
An officer on patrol the evening of Feb. 5 in the area of Lakeview Avenue ran a random license plate and turned up a suspended registration for a Westwood man driving a green GMC Yukon.
The driver, who was not the registered owner of the car, provided his credentials, including an expired insurance card.
Dispatch confirmed the registration was suspended over expired insurance and cancelled in September 2017.
The car was towed. Police phoned the registered owner and told him how to retrieve it. The driver got a ride from the scene by Uber.
The summonses—driving with a suspended license/registration and uninsured motorist/vehicle—are answerable March 21 in Pascack Joint Municipal Court.
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WESTWOOD
Trio with fake currency arrested on series of charges
– The Westwood Police Department announced the arrests of Jennifer Pereyra, 19, Sakai Hardy, 19, and Destiny Ortiz, 18, on charges of possession/passing of counterfeit currency, theft by deception, receiving stolen property, financial facilitation of criminal activity (money laundering), possession of a weapon, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
On Feb. 3, a Westwood Police Officer stopped a motor vehicle for erratic operation. After speaking with the operator, the officer detected the odor of marijuana emanating from the interior compartment of the vehicle.
The operator, now identified as Jennifer Pereyra of Flushing, N.Y., consented to a search of the vehicle, which yielded a quantity of marijuana, drug paraphernalia, counterfeit currency, O.C. (pepper) spray, and numerous bags containing clothing from various retailers. Pereyra and three passengers (one juvenile) were taken into custody.
Further search of Hardy yielded an additional $1,100 in counterfeit currency (total $1,250) and a fraudulent driver’s license.
Through the course of the investigation, it became apparent that the counterfeit currency was used to purchase merchandise, which was then returned for cash at various retailers. The merchandise was estimated at approximately $1,771.
Jennifer Pereyra, Sakai Hardy, and Destiny Ortiz were charged with forgery, a crime of the third degree; theft by deception, a crime of the third degree; receiving stolen property, a crime of the third degree; financial facilitation of criminal activity, a crime of the third degree; possession of a weapon 2C:39-5D, a crime of the fourth degree; possession of marijuana, a disorderly persons offense; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a disorderly persons offense. Hardy, who was also charged with possession of a false government issued ID, and Ortiz were released on their own recognizance. Pereyra was lodged at the Bergen County Jail, and is scheduled for a first appearance in Bergen County Central Judicial Processing Court.
BERGEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE
Tallying lives lost, saved from drug overdoses
– As the nation grapples with opioid addiction (heroin to prescription pills), the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office continues to report overdose fatalities and people saved from overdoses using Narcan, an antidote drug.
The prosecutor’s office shares news of the incidents on social media using the hashtag #StopTheODs.
This month:
• On Feb. 2, BCPO announced Lodi police revived a 23-year-old man, and Dedgewater police saved a 25-year-old female using Narcan.
• On Feb. 2, BCPO announced that a 29-year-old woman died of a suspected drug overdose, the seventh overdose fatality in Bergen County in 2018.
• On Feb. 6, BCPO said a 36-year-old man from Westwood and a 43-year-old man from Lyndhurst both died from drug overdoses, the eighth and ninth people to perish in 2018.
• On Feb. 6, BCPO said Lodi, Hasbrouck Heights, North Arlington and New Milford police departments all used Narcan to save five more people, bringing the total saved to 29 in 2018.
• On Feb. 6, BCPO said Lyndhurst, Paramus and Lodi police departments all saved overdose victims using Narcan, bringing the total number of saves in 2018 to 32.