At 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 19, Kearny police responded to the report of a “serious accident” at the intersection of Belgrove Drive and Woodland Ave., where they found that a 2008 Mercedes had apparently rear-ended a 2015 Jeep.
Prior to the arrival of Officers Derek Hemphill and Chris Medina and Sgt. Jack Corbett, the Mercedes driver had reportedly fled the area on foot. The operator of the Jeep, a 47-year-old Kearny man who suffered back and abdominal injuries, provided the other driver’s description and direction of flight, and Medina found the suspect near Belgrove and Clark St., police said.
Nicholas Matos, 21, of Kearny, was brought back to the accident scene, where he was reportedly identified by the victim, who was taken to St. Michael’s Medical Center in Newark. Police said Matos had suffered minor cuts and was checked by Kearny EMS but declined medical assistance.
Following field sobriety tests Matos was arrested, given an Alcotest at headquarters and charged with DWI, assault by auto, reckless driving, fleeing the scene of an accident and failure to report an accident.
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Other recent reports from the Kearny police blotter included the following:
March 17
At 7 p.m., Capt. David Feldhan and Officers Michael Gontarczuk and Jose Castillo were called to the 100 block of Sanford Ave., where, apparently following some sort of verbal altercation, a man had reportedly smashed the windshield of a ’98 Dodge pickup with a shovel. [It is not known if the altercation and/or the shovel were snow-related.]
Joao Figueiredo, 39, of Kearny, was charged with criminal mischief, possession of a weapon (the shovel) and possession of same for an unlawful purpose.
March 18
At 4:30 p.m., a parking dispute that was snow-related brought Officers Alan Stickno, Sean Wilson and Stephen Hroncich to Boyd St., between Chestnut St. and Kearny Ave., where a 36-year-old Kearny man alleged that he had been assaulted by Raymond Adames, 34, of Kearny, police said. Both parties would just have been referred to court to file complaints, police said, but Adames ended up under arrest on a Union Township MV warrant. Police in that jurisdiction were notified.
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Det. Michael Andrews, on off-duty uniformed detail at BJ’s at 9:30 p.m., followed Earl Holloway, 50, of East Orange, into the store lot and, police said, detained him for questioning based on two observations: 1) Holloway’s jacket pockets were bulging, and 2) Andrews had not seen him buy anything.
As the detective was escorting him back into the store, the suspect reportedly broke free and ran toward Passaic Ave., but Andrews tackled him and turned him over to Sgt. Corbett and Officer Jonathan Dowie, who had arrived on scene.
Police said the pocket bulges turned out to be hot dogs and beef, valued at $119.50. In a search incident to arrest, Holloway was allegedly found to be in possession of one glass pipe and one Provident Bank card bearing the name of a female.
Holloway ended up in the Hudson County Jail, charged with: shoplifting, resisting arrest, credit card theft, possession of drug paraphernalia, and on two open warrants — $2,500, Newark, assault, and a no-bail NCIC warrant from the Essex County Sheriff.
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At 11 p.m., Officers Hemphill and Jason Rodrigues observed two individuals emerge from the weeds off E. Midland Ave. and head toward a parked Honda, from which the officers said came the “overpowering odor” of another sort of weed. Guilherme Lazzarini, 21, and Matthew Mendez, 20, both of Kearny, were charged with possession of pot and paraphernalia and use of pot. Additionally, driver Mendez was issued a summons for possession of a CDS in a MV.
March 19
At 3:30 a.m., Officers Gontarczuk and David Bush were called to a shoplifting in progress at Walmart, where store security pointed out suspect Vesttese Tullis, 26, of Newark, who allegedly was found to have stuffed $731.49 worth of items — clothing, batteries, deodorant, soap — into a backpack and purse. Police said she also had a cut plastic straw containing suspected heroin residue (not sold at Walmart).
Tullis initially gave her name as Sydieah Cruz, but a fingerprint check revealed her true identity, police said. She was charged with shoplifting, possession of heroin and drug paraphernalia, hindering apprehension, and on two contempt warrants: no bail NCIC warrant, Essex County Sheriff, and $100, Newark. By 10 a.m., she was en route to the Hudson County Jail.
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At 4:20 a.m., at Kearny and Linden Aves., Officers Rodrigues and Richard Pawlowski came upon a 1998 Honda, its engine running and its driver, Jose Costa-Silva, 49, of Kearny, asleep at the wheel, police reported. The officers turned off the ignition and removed both the keys and the driver from the vehicle. After FSTS and an Alcotest, he was charged with DWI.
March 20
Another shoplifting, this time at Wawa, was reported at 11:15 p.m. Sgt. Glenn Reed and Officers Castillo and Mina Ekladious arrived to find that Officer Jean — having completed an off-duty assignment elsewhere — had already detained suspect Keith Thomas, 47, of Newark, who had allegedly tried to steal $121.31 worth of Red Bull energy drinks.
He was turned over to the on-duty cops and in a search incident to arrest was reportedly found to be in possession of a TD Bank Visa card and a Lane Bryant credit card — neither in his name — and a baggy containing traces of a CDS.
Thomas was charged with shoplifting, credit-card theft, possession of drug paraphernalia and on a $500 Elizabeth warrant for driving while suspended.
