UPDATE: A robber armed with a “paintball-type” gun and wearing a brightly colored wig and woman’s clothing got at least $112,000 in cash — and possibly as much as $120,000 — during a holdup at the Glen Rock Savings Bank this morning, law enforcement sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Glen Rock police this afternoon released the surveillance images above.

The robber was described as 5’ 7” with a medium build and wearing oversize sunglasses, black gloves, a woman’s black coat buttoned to the top, white boots — “or some type of white material pulled down over the boots,” police said — and carrying what sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT was a Louis Vuitton bag.

Authorities weren’t certain of the bandit’s gender.
*      *     *      *      *      *

ANYONE who can identify this person, or who has information that could help the investigation, is asked to call Detective James Calaski at (201) 670-3948 or Detective Sgt. Sgt Eric Reamy at (201) 670-3947.

*      *      *      *      *      *

Glen Rock police were instantly at the Rock Road bank after the alarm was called in around 10:25 a.m.

COURTESY: NBC4NEWYORK

Soon after, they recovered the weapon in a snowbank around the corner on Rodney Street. They suspect the robber got into a getaway car parked nearby, sources said.

Although authorities wouldn’t confirm a dollar figure, several law enforcement sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT it’s at least $112,000.

Another said that the robber was brought into the vault, which accounts for the unusually substantial haul.

A K-9 unit from the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office began tracking but then lost the scent, another said.

NJ Transit trains were slowed during the search.

PHOTOS: Courtesy GLEN ROCK PD

PHOTO: The driver climbed out of his cement truck after it tipped taking a turn on southbound Route 17 in Saddle River at the Allendale border this morning.

He was taking the East Allendale Avenue exit when the crash occurred, police told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

PHOTO: Courtesy ALLENDALE FD

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Two men wanted in connection with a series of burglaries in Upper Saddle River and Paramus were picked up yesterday by South Hackensack police, who said they found the pair carrying 50 bags of heroin with the street name “007” and burglary tools.

Michael Puig, 25, of Paramus was being held on a combined $250,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail and Gino Manna Jr., 34, of Paterson on $75,000 bail.

South Hackensack Officer Eugene Estevez, acting on a tip from Paramus colleagues, nabbed the pair after spotting their car parked at the Knights Inn motel on Route 46, Capt. Robert Kaiser told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Puig is charged with four burglary counts out of Upper Saddle River and a receiving stolen property charge out of Paramus, as well as drug, paraphernalia and burglary tool possession charges out of South Hackensack.

Manna is charged with burglary, theft and criminal mischief out of Upper Saddle River, along with the same South Hackensack offenses.

Investigations were continuing and additional burglary-related charges were expected.

MUGSHOTS: Courtesy SOUTH HACKENSACK PD

YOU SAW IT HERE FIRST: Police this afternoon released surveillance images of the robber who sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT took more than $112,000 in cash from the Glen Rock Savings Bank this morning while wearing a red wig and woman’s clothing and pointing what authorities called a “paintball-type” gun.

The robber was described as 5’ 7” with a medium build and wearing oversize sunglasses, black gloves, a woman’s black coat buttoned to the top, white boots — “or some type of white material pulled down over the boots,” police said — and carrying what sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT was a Louis Vuitton bag.

Authorities weren’t certain of the bandit’s gender.

*      *     *      *      *      *

ANYONE who can identify this person, or who has information that could help the investigation, is asked to call Detective James Calaski at (201) 670-3948 or Detective Sgt. Sgt Eric Reamy at (201) 670-3947.

*      *      *      *      *      *

Glen Rock police were instantly at the Rock Road bank after the alarm was called in around 10:25 a.m.

Soon after, they recovered the weapon in a snowbank around the corner on Rodney Street. They suspect the robber got into a getaway car parked nearby, sources said.

Although authorities wouldn’t confirm a dollar figure, several law enforcement sources told CLIFFVIEW PILOT it’s at least $112,000.

Another said that the robber was brought into the vault, which accounts for the unusually substantial haul.

A K-9 unit from the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office began tracking but then lost the scent, another said.

NJ Transit trains were slowed during the search.

PHOTOS: Courtesy GLEN ROCK PD

ONLY ON CVP: Two Englewood men who police said robbed two Brooklyn men of a Range Rover and other items after agreeing to participate in an Instagram scheme were each sentenced in Hackensack today to three years in state prison — but could be out after nine months.

Superior Court Judge James J. Guida said he was persuaded by the “sincere remorse” of Raymond R. Perry (above, left), 26, and 23-year-old Christopher Jordan (right), as well as their lack of any prior criminal history, to sentence them to the lowest term allowed after both pleaded guilty to theft.

Guida also told them that he would favorably consider any application for intensively-supervised early release, if they qualify. Even if they don’t, they’ll be eligible for parole by Thanksgiving.

“I just want to continue being — to get everything done and get back to how it should be,” Perry told the judge. “I apologize for everything, and I pledge my right hand you will never see me again.”

Jordan, speaking over the sobs of two women in the gallery, said: ”I want to apologize to the court, and to my family behind me. I made a mistake, and I’m not here to make any excuses for it.”

“I’m tortured a little bit here how to sentence these defendants,” Guida said, adding that prosecutors “want more.”

But he noted that no one was hurt and that both men would have prison records after serving their time for theft.

Both were originally charged with carjacking following the July 20, 2013 incident, which began when Perry, Jordan and a third co-defendant, 28-year-old Darryl R. Tinsley of Sussex, responded to an Instagram post to “make money” featuring photos of attractive young women.

The attorneys for Perry and Jordan said the two Brooklyn men who came to meet them in a vacant house where Tinsley once lived were instead touting a check-fraud scheme as a way to make money.

However, police said the trio wore masks and demanded the SUV, a Rolex watch, cash and a cellphone.

They took off in the 2008 Range Rover Sport HSE, followed by another SUV, then dumped it in the Rock Creek Housing Development.

They then texted the SUV’s location to the owners, their lawyers said.

Tinsley wasn’t in court today and will have his part of the case handled at a later date.

Raymond R. Perry (left), Christopher Jordan (STORY / PHOTOS: CLIFFVIEW PILOT Courthouse Reporter Mary K. Miraglia)

SHOUT OUT: A 9-year-old bearded collie named Madison from Upper Saddle River who went missing on Friday turned up today — outside her family’s house.

Robin Urman of Pet ResQ Inc. swung by the home of John and Leslie Cosares today “and there she was on the deck, wagging her tail,” their daughter, Justine, told CLIFFVIEW PILOT this afternoon.

PHOTOS: Courtesy JUSTINE COSARES

Madison looked none the worse for wear, wasn’t bleeding but definitely needed a grooming, she said.

She also scarfed down a large bowl of food and another of water, mingled happily with the family’s other champion beardies and headed to the vet.

Cosares had been shuttling between her home in Queens and North Jersey, putting up fliers and contacting various agencies and people since Friday. Her parents were about to board Madison with a nearby veterinarian before heading on a required business trip to Las Vegas that day when she bolted.

“I was on no sleep for about three days,” their daughter said. “So Robin told me to stay home today.”

When Madison spotted Urman, a close friend of Cosares, “she went right to her,” she said.

What began as a groundswell of Facebook support exploded the past several days, as friends and strangers alike posted fliers at vets, shelters and animal hospitals while sharing online links and tips — and searching the streets in Upper Saddle River, Woodcliff Lake and other areas where Madison was reportedly spotted.

“I don’t know what to say,” Cosares told CLIFFVIEW PILOT today. “People have been amazing.

“I want to thank EVERYONE,” she said. READ MORE….

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: An Elmwood Park woman surprised a burglar who then ran from her kitchen and fled the area tonight after she grabbed her phone, Police Chief Michael Foligno told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Another family member had left the Lee Street residence a short time before the 6 p.m. break-in, leading police to believe the intruder was surprised to find anyone home, Foligno said.

The resident also told police the would-be burglar was talking on the phone, suggesting a possible getaway driver, the chief said.

She described the intruder as Hispanic, in his late 20s to early 30s. clean shaven with dark skin. She said he was wearing a Navy blue sweater, blue jeans and a blue skull cap.

A K9 unit tracked the scent to Miller Avenue and Elm Street before losing it, he added.

No one was injured and nothing reported stolen, Foligno said.

His detectives and forensic specialists from the Bergen County Sheriff’s Bureau of Criminal Identification were investigating.

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Elmwood Park police arrested an engaged Lodi couple after finding them carrying 50 or so bags of heroin in the parking lot of a Route 46 motel last night, authoriteis said.

Juan Calhoun, 21, and Amanda Calhoun-Inserra, who turned 20 last week, were released on court summonses charging drug and drug paraphernalia possession following the 11 p.m. arrests outside the Town House Motel, Police Chief Michael Foligno told CLIFFVIEW PILOT this morning.

SHOUT OUT: A critical component of the consolidation of the Bergen County Police Department into the sheriff’s office was put into place this week when Bergen County Sheriff Michael Saudino promoted Kevin Pell to chief of his department.

A career law enforcement professional, Pell was among a group of select police professionals who Saudino said helped him “quickly formulate a template for a smooth transition once the realignment becomes official later this month.”

BCSO Chief Kevin Pell (PHOTOS: Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF)

“Throughout this process Kevin has demonstrated true leadership with a vision for the future which made him a logical choice to lead the rank and file of the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office,” Saudino said.

As chief, he will oversee daily operations, including administration and budget, as well as all units excluding Corrections.

Pell become a county corrections officer in 1992, maintaining housing and security operations at the jail.

He quickly moved up the ranks and in 2002 was promoted to sergeant, followed by a promotion to lieutenant in 2005 and captain four years later.

As captain, he coordinated the officer’s three-year successful accreditation program.

Last year, Saudino promoted Pell to inspector.

Pell, a state-certified public manager and police instructor, studied advanced leadership in the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development program.

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: One Mercedes crashed on the Garden State Parkway while another kept going after both were swiped from a Route 17 lot in Paramus this morning.

*      *      *      *      *      *

IMAGE: Courtesy ROCHELLE PARK POLICE CHIEF ROBERT  FLANNELLY

YOU SAW IT HERE FIRST: A Rochelle Park bank customer suspecting something amiss snapped a cellphone shot of a robbery in progress. CLICK HERE….

*      *      *      *      *      *

Employees at the Mercedes-Benz dealership told police they were clearing snow off parked vehicles when two men — described only as dark-skinned — each got into one and sped off, exiting onto the southbound parkway, Deputy Police Chief Robert Guidetti told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Paramus officers found that one of the vehicles — a black 2015 E350 — crashed with a Jeep Liberty at mile marker 157.

The thief — who witnesses said was wearing a black ski mask and dark clothing — hopped out and ran towards Clifton, Guidetti said.

Clifton police assisted Paramus officers in an area search.

The second vehicle, a black 2015 S550, continued south on the GSP.

An investigation was continuing.

The cars were only the fourth and fifth swiped in Paramus this year, the deputy chief noted.

YOU SAW IT HERE FIRST: A Rochelle Park bank customer suspecting something amiss snapped a cellphone shot of a robbery in progress this morning.

The robber — described as dark-skinned and possibly Hispanic, about 25 to 28 years old and 5-foot-10 to 6 feet tall — was carrying only a red plastic bag with “against the odds” written on it during the holdup of the Community Bank of Bergen County, Police Chief Robert Flannelly told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

“No gloves. No mask. No weapon. No note,” the chief said.

The robber first entered the bank at 10:09 a.m. and “asked about cashing in coins” before leaving, Flannelly said.

He returned exactly five minutes later and told the teller: “Give me the money and no one gets hurt,” the chief said.

Except for teal sneakers, the robber was wearing all black — including a baseball cap with lettering on the front, a hoodie, a black puffy jacket with writing on the front and sweatpants. He also had an earring in his right lobe and a gold ring on his right pinkie, the chief said.

“A customer thought he seemed suspicious and took the cellphone photo,” Flannelly told CLIFFVIEW PILOT. “It’s an excellent shot. You get a good look at him.”

Workers on ladders can be seen tending to ceiling repairs nearby.

Exiting the Rochelle Avenue bank, the robber apparently hopped into a silver car that pulled out of the parking lot and headed toward Hackensack on Central Avenue, Flannelly said.

A Bergen County Sheriff’s K-9 unit joined police at the scene and bulletins were issued to area police for license-plate checks. The Bergen County Sheriff’s Bureau of Criminal Identification was collecting and processing evidence.

IMAGE: Courtesy ROCHELLE PARK POLICE CHIEF ROBERT FLANNELLY

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: An Elmwood Park police officer had to break the window of a car being driven by a drunk, unlicensed motorist after he began rocking it back and forth to try and free it from a snowbank, authorities said.

Officers were alerted just after midnight today to a Kia station wagon “being driven recklessly” on Boulevard, Police Chief Michael Foligno told CLIFFVIEW PILOT this morning.

They found it in the snowbank in front of the Subway, he said.

The driver, 35-year-old Jose Arbelo, “appeared highly intoxicated and refused to communicate” with the officers, the chief said.

He then began alternately putting the vehicle into drive and reverse in an attempt to free it, he said.

“This posed a dangerous situation for the officers and the driver, as well as the public,” Foligno said..

After repeatedly ordering Arbelo to stop, the officers had to break a window using a flashlight “to ensure that [he]could not again operate that vehicle,” the chief said.

An officer reached in, opened the door and got Arbelo out.

At headquarters, Arbelo “became combative and attempted to raise his hands to strike a detective,” Foligno added. “Several officers were able to gain control of him and escorted him into the cell block.”

Police released Arbelo but held onto his car.

He was issued court summonses on charges of DWI, careless and reckless driving and not having a driver’s license.

“It should be noted that on scene officers placed themselves in harm’s way for an extended period of time to ensure the driver would not be able to begin driving again,” Foligno said. “This was an extremely dangerous situation and I would like to commend [them] for doing so.”

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: An ex-con fugitive from North Carolina broke into five homes in Teaneck and Englewood, then fenced what he stole from them, an indictment returned by a grand jury in Hackensack charges.

Career burglar Antonio Singletary, 42, has been held in the Bergen County Jail on $300,000 bail since late October, when detectives from both towns spotted him shopping in downtown Englewood and arrested him in a rented vehicle in Teaneck a short time later.

Antonio Singletary (MUGSHOT: Courtesy TEANECK PD)

A search of the vehicle turned up jewelry, coins, electronics and other valuables stolen in area burglaries, as well as drug paraphernalia and a pipe cutter, Teaneck Police Chief Robert Carney said at the time.

Singletary, of Raleigh, had spent the previous two weeks breaking into homes, including one the day he was arrested, according to the 10-count indictment.

The 6-foot-1-inch, 280-pound Singletary has an adult criminal history in New Jersey that stretches back more than 20 years — including arrests for burglary, robbery and drug and weapons possession, court records show.

He’s due back in court a week from tomorrow.

MUGSHOT: Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY SHERIFF

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: A second suspect was charged today with felony murder in the kidnapping and killing of a Fort Lee high-rise tenant and three others with lying to investigators, Bergen County, Prosecutor John L. Molinelli announced this afternoon.

Robert R. Martinez, 26, of Worcester, MA joined the first suspect arrested in the case — 25-year-old Andre Jamal “Boogie” Thompson — in luring 24-year-old Jordan Johnson to an apartment that Thompson sometimes used in Fort Lee where he was killed and his keys and cellphone taken on Jan. 14, Molinelli said.

Jordan Johnson / Carriage House, Fort Lee

Johnson’s phone was used send text messages to his girlfriend, luring her from the 12th-floor high-rise apartment at the Carriage House on 15th Street that she shared with him to a supposed meeting in Harlem, the prosecutor said.

Meanwhile, Martinez and Thompson fled the state, he said.

The girlfriend, Megan Faulkner, called police after she returned to find the apartment ransacked and jewelry, cash and other valuables missing.

Fort Lee police then issued an alert for Johnson and his car.

CLIFFVIEW PILOT was the first to report that Johnson’s black 2013 BMW 550 Gran Turismo was found at 1:35 p.m. the next day in the Bronx, with his body in the trunk, after a police license plate reader registered a hit on the missing vehicle.

Johnson had been strangled, authorities said.

Andre Jamal “Boogie” Thompson (MUGSHOT: Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR)

Law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the investigation told CLIFFVIEW PILOT that detectives were exploring an ID theft ring’s relationship to Johnson. They released a surveillance video of a person wanted in connection with Johnson’s killing.

Timestamped at 2:45 a.m. the day he was found, it shows the person in a blue, fur-lined hooded jacket, gray jeans and dark-colored sneakers holding something and looking back while walking away from Johnson’s car on East 211 Street and Tryon Avenue.

Authorities arrested Thompson on Feb. 4. He has remained in custody at Prince George’s County Correctional Center in Maryland pending extradition.

Martinez was located and interviewed by detectives in Worcester, MA on Feb. 4, Molinelli said today. His investigators subsequently learned that he “was not truthful in his account” to them, the prosecutor said.

A judge ordered Martinez held on $2 million bail in the Worcester County House of Corrections in Massachusetts pending extradition to New Jersey on charges of felony murder, robbery, burglary and hindering.

NYPD VIDEO IMAGE

Arrest warrants also were executed today on Courtney Evelyn, 30, Dyrol Evelyn, 25 and 24-year-old Diana Escotto, all of New York City, Molinelli said.

Courtney and Dyrol are brother and sister, he said.

All three were interviewed at different times during the investigation going back to Jan. 20, Molinelli said.

Based on their accounts, they were charged with hindering apprehension, he said.

All three will be held by the New York City Department of Corrections pending extradition to New Jersey.
Assistance to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit was provided by Fort Lee police, the NYPD, the FBI, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and police in Worcester and Southbridge, MA, Molinelli said.

MUGSHOTS (CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT): Robert R. Martinez, Dyrol Evelyn, Diana Escotto, Courtney Evelyn (Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR)

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Detectives today arrested a 42-year-old unemployed Lodi man at his home and charged him with using an underage girl’s identity online to get other men to send him pornographic images.

Matthew Bolger was being held on $10,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail, charged with child endangerment and criminal impersonation.

He also was hit with a minor drug charge for a small amount of Ecstasy found during a search of his apartment, Bergen County Prosecutor John L. Molinelli said this afternoon.

Bolger created social media accounts as the girl, whom he knows, then “engaged in chats” with men while posing as her in order to get the images “for sexual gratification,” the prosecutor said.

MUGSHOT: Courtesy BERGEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR

The man known on the Howard Stern radio show as the “King of All Blacks” and his wife are suing the city of Englewood, claiming that he was demoted from his DPW job and that she was sexually harassed, a published report says.
Lawrence Coward and his wife, Jessie, filed separate civil complaints in Hackensack alleging sexual harassment, employee discrimination and retaliation, according to Nj.com.

Coward contends that his supervisor told his wife “if she didn’t give into a hug that he would make things hard for her husband at DPW and put him on the back of [a] garbage truck,” his suit contends.

“After Jessie repeatedly refused to hug him, she finally gave him for full hug with max physical contact,” it says.

City officials said they don’t comment on pending litigation. READ MORE….

PHOTO: Courtesy THE HOWARD STERN SHOW

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Elmwood Park police arrested a 22-year-old Bergen Community College student from Lodi after they said they found him carrying more than two ounces of marijuana for sale.

Anthony Padovano was released on a court summons charging him with pot possession with the intent to distribute the drug following the 4:30 p.m. arrest yesterday on Locust Street, Police Chief Michael Foligno said this morning.

SHOUT OUT: A 9-year-old bearded collie from Upper Saddle River who went missing a week ago today was groomed and good as new after turning up Wednesday outside her family’s house.

“I added 10 years to my life and she looks like a puppy,” Robin Urman of Pet ResQ Inc. said jokingly after posting the photo above of Madison last night.

Urman swung by the home of John and Leslie Cosares on Wednesday “and there she was on the deck, wagging her tail,” the couple’s daughter, Justine, told CLIFFVIEW PILOT soon after.

PHOTOS: Courtesy JUSTINE COSARES

Madison looked none the worse for wear, wasn’t bleeding but definitely needed a grooming, she said.

She also scarfed down a large bowl of food and another of water, mingled happily with the family’s other champion beardies and headed to the vet.

Cosares had been shuttling between her home in Queens and North Jersey, putting up fliers and contacting various agencies and people since Friday. Her parents were about to board Madison with a nearby veterinarian before heading on a required business trip to Las Vegas that day when she bolted.

“I was on no sleep for about three days,” their daughter said. “So Robin told me to stay home today.”

When Madison spotted Urman, a close friend of Cosares, “she went right to her,” she said.

“There were footprints and no way for her to get back into the yard,” Urman said, “so I broke a hole in the fence put out food and towels that smelt like her siblings and sprinkled [the father’s] cologne along the sidewalk.

“9 out of 10 will head home,” she said.

What began as a groundswell of Facebook support exploded the past several days, as friends and strangers alike posted fliers at vets, shelters and animal hospitals while sharing online links and tips — and searching the streets in Upper Saddle River, Woodcliff Lake and other areas where Madison was reportedly spotted.

“I don’t know what to say,” Cosares told CLIFFVIEW PILOT on Wednesday. “People have been amazing.

“I want to thank EVERYONE,” she said. READ MORE….

PHOTOS:
ABOVE: Courtesy Justine Cosares
TOP: Courtesy Robyn Urman

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: Teaneck police this morning continued to investigate the death of a 65-year-old home health aide from the township who succumbed to her injuries after being struck by an SUV on her way to work Wednesday morning.

Carmen Marin, 65, was crossing Teaneck Road from east to west when she was hit by the SUV as its male driver turned left from State Street around 8 a.m., Capt. John Faggello told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Marin, who investigators said may not have been in the crosswalk when she was struck, was taken to the trauma unit of Hackensack University Medical Center.

No charges were immediately filed or summonses issued, said Faggello, adding that the investigation was continuing.

YOU SAW IT HERE FIRST: Rochelle Park police this afternoon released surveillance video of the man who robbed the Community Bank of Bergen County yesterday.

The collection of four videos shows the robber entering and exiting the bank, as well as approaching the teller and handing her a red plastic shopping bag.

CLIFFVIEW PILOT removed two of the videos because they include images of customers.

“Give me the money and no one gets hurt,” he instructed her, Police Chief Robert Flannelly told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

The robber — described as dark-skinned and possibly Hispanic, about 25 to 28 years old and 5-foot-10 to 6 feet tall — was carrying only the red plastic bag with “against the odds” written on it during the holdup.

IMAGE: Courtesy ROCHELLE PARK POLICE CHIEF ROBERT FLANNELLY

He also had on a black Miami Heat baseball cap and was wearing a a large stud earring in his right ear and a large ring on his right pinkie, as well as blue or teal sneakers, a black or grey puffy hooded jacket and sweatpants.

The robber first entered the bank at 10:09 a.m. and “asked about cashing in coins” before walking over to the coin machine and leaving, Flannelly told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

He returned exactly five minutes later.

A bank customer suspecting something amiss snapped a cellphone shot. READ MORE….