Shoplifter Captured After Falling Off His Bicycle

Not Mark Lawrence

Mark A. Lawrence, 52, of Lake Como, was arrested by the Ocean Township Police Department last evening after fleeing from Target of Ocean on a bicycle, according to a statement by Det. Lt. Timothy Torchia.  He was taken into custody after falling off the bicycle and putting up a brief struggle.

Officer Ryan Krug responded to a shoplifting in progress call at Target and observed the suspect, later identified as Lawrence, cycling away.  Officer Dean Schooch spotted Lawrence near Asbury Circle.

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Squirrel rescuer rejects plea deal

Freehold Township- Maria Vaccarella, the Howell woman who was threatened with a $1000 fine and six months in jail for rescuing two baby squirrels, rejected a plea deal of a $35 court costs and a suspended fine that was offered by Township Prosecutor Anthony Vecchio this afternoon.

Vaccarella and her pro-bono attorney, animal rights lawyer Doris Lin, showed up unannounced in Freehold Township Municipal Court to ask Vecchio to dismiss the summons that Fish and Wildlife officials mailed to Vaccarella after they took the squirrels she cared for after they were abandoned by their mother.  The case, which was transferred to Freehold from Howell Township because of a conflict, was originally scheduled for January 27th.

Vecchio told MoreMonmouthMusings that he thought the suspended fine and court cost would be a fair way to resolve the case that has received nationwide attention.  He said the case would be transferred back to Howell for litigation.

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Ocean Township Police seek public’s help in identifying suspected thief

The Ocean Township Police Department is asking for the public’s help in identifying a suspected thief.

Detective Lt Timothy Torchia released the surveillance photo (left) of the suspect in a theft that occured in December.

Anyone who knows the man in the photograph is asked to contact the Township Police Department in one of the following ways:
Detective Jesse Orbach 732-531-1428
Email: [email protected]
Crime Tips: 732-531-3323 (Anonymous)
Email: [email protected]

Direct Message – Social Media:
www.facebook.com/OceanTwpPolice
www.twitter.com/OceanTwpPolice

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Wreck Pond Restoration Enters Next Phase

Freeholder Director Tom Arnone, Assembly Dave Rible, Congressman Chris Smith and Deputy Freeholder Director Serena DiMaso in Spring Lake, January 19 to kick off Phase 2 of the Wreck Pond Restoration Project

“A huge shared service partnership comprising all levels of government and non-profit partners working together to improve the environment, the safety of residents and their property.”  That is how Freeholder Director Tom Arnone characterized the Wreck Pond Restoration Project, Phase II of which was kicked off yesterday in Spring Lake.

Congressman Chris Smith, DEP Commissioner Bob Martin, Assemblyman Dave Rible, Arnone, Freeholders Serena DiMaso and Gary Rich, Spring Lake Mayor Jennifer Naughton, U.S. Fish and Wildlife field supervisor Eric Schrading and American Littoral Society Executive Director Tim Dillingham gathered in the cold yesterday to commemorate the progress of the project that is coming to fruition after more than a decade of advocacy, study and planning.

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NJ Senate bill would neuter non-profit veterinary clinics

A bill introduced in the New Jersey Senate by Senator Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex) last week would require that non-profit veterinary services provide services only to animals that are owned by people who are receiving public assistance like food stamps, section 8 housing and welfare.

The bill also requires that all for profit veterinary corporations, partnerships or associations be owned only by licensed veterinarians.

S-297  was referred to the Senate Commerce Committee.  The Committee is scheduled to meet on January 27.

The Animal Welfare Association (AWA) said that if the bill becomes law their pet clinic and other non-profit pet clinics in New Jersey could not:

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Howell woman faces six months in jail for raising baby squirrels

A Howell woman has been issued a $500 summons and faces a potential sentence of six months in jail because she took in two newborn squirrels that had been abandoned by their mother, according to a reports by ABC News in New York and Philadelphia.

Posted by Maria Vaccarella on Thursday, January 14, 2016

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Using Pig Organs For Human Transplants: Medical Miracle Or Playing God?

In a world where the demand for organ transplants greatly outnumbers the availability of organ donors, a small division of scientists believes they have a solution: growing human organs inside the bodies of farm animals. Despite the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently denouncing such projects, some independent U.S. research centers have decided to go ahead… Read the rest of this entry »

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Three $50K Powerball Winning Tickets Sold in Monmouth County

Three Monmouth County retailers sold Powerball tickets that won $50,000 in the January 13 drawing, according to a press release by the  NJ Lottery.

Penny Pantry Food Store, located at 4345 Route 9 North in Freehold,  Keansburg Drugs, 119 Main St., Keansburg, and Welsh Farms, 130 Route 33 W., in Manalapan each sold tickets that match four of five numbers and the Powerball. The winning numbers were 4,8,19,27,34 and the Powerball was 10.

Two tickets that matched the five winning numbers but not the Powerball were sold in New Jersey.  A ticket sold at the Wawa on Spingside Rd in Westhampton, Burlington County is worth $2 million to the player who bet and extra dollar and match the powerplay. A $1 million ticket matching five numbers without the powerplay was sold at the 7-11 on Buckelew Ave in Jamesburg, Middlesex County.

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Casagrande’s Farewell

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Union Beach Man Pleads Guilty to Streaming Kiddie Porn

Photo via facebook

Joseph J. Gentile, 43, of Broadway in Union Beach, pleaded guilty on Monday to Second Degree Endangering the Welfare of a Child (Distribution of Child Pornography) before Superior Court Judge Ronald Lee Reisner, according to a statement by Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Gentile was arrested in March of last year after a CyberTip from  the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) revealed that Gentile was streaming a video of child pornography on November 23, 2014, over the Omegle network, an online video chat service.  He was released on $150,000 bail with no 10% option.

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