Middletown’s Crime Rate Lowest Since 1969

The Jets were Super Bowl Champions and Neil Armstrong took the first walk on the moon during the year when Middletown Township had less serious crime than occurred in 2015.

There were 520 index crimes reported in Middletown during 2015, for an Index Crime Rate of 7.82 per 1000 people.  Index crimes are those that are reported annually to the FBI.  They are murder and non-negligent homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, larceny-theft, and arson.

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Authorities investigating 2 separate shootings in Freehold

FREEHOLD — Authorities are investigating two separate shootings that happened within blocks of each other Monday night. A spokesman for the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, Charles Webster, confirmed the shootings but did not have any additional information on Tuesday morning. The first shooting happened on Ford Avenue at around 6 p.m., said a resident in the… Read the rest of this entry »

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Doherty: Belmar’s new pay to pay law has nothing to do with his Freeholder campaign

Belmar Mayor Matt Doherty, left, is preparing to face off with Freeholder Director Tom Arnone, right, in the November election.  Doherty said the relaxed pay to play law he is set to pass in Belmar has nothing to do with his Freeholder campaign.

The Mayor and Council of Belmar has introduced an ordinance that would remove the current restrictions on the Borough’s liquor license holders, real estate developers, professionals and vendors from contributing to the campaigns of Borough elected officials seeking higher office.

Mayor Matt Doherty told MoreMonmouthMusings that the ordinance has nothing to do with his candidacy for Monmouth County Freeholder.

Doherty announced that he is seeking the Democrat nomination for Freeholder on January 15.  The ordinance was introduced on January 19 and is on the agenda for a public hearing and final vote at the Borough Council meeting tonight.  Doherty said it will be tabled and another version will be introduced at tonight’s meeting.

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House of Representatives Passes International Megan’s Law, Bill Awaits Obama’s Signature

By Congressman Chris Smith

Eight years after I first introduced a bill to protect children in the U.S. and around the world from convicted pedophiles who travel in secret to or from the United States—currently below the radar of law enforcement officials—it is now on the verge of becoming law.

The House today passed, and sent to the President, my International Megan’s Law to Prevent Demand for Child Sex Trafficking (HR 515)—named for Megan Kanka, a seven-year-old from Hamilton, N.J. in our congressional district who was sexually assaulted and killed in 1994. Megan’s assailant was a convicted, repeat sex offender living across the street, unbeknownst to residents in the neighborhood. Due to public outcry in response to the tragedy and to hard work by Megan’s loving parents, Richard and Maureen Kanka, the New Jersey State Legislature passed the original Megan’s Law (NJSA 2C: 7-1 through 7-II) in 1994 to require public notification of convicted sex offenders living in the community.

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The Arnone Report: Jonas, Wreck Pond, Grown in Monmouth

Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

By Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

I think Mother Nature is surely playing tricks on us. Last week at this time we were still digging out from one of the biggest blizzards in years.  Some of our towns reported nearly two feet accumulation and more in certain areas with snowdrifts piling on several additional inches.  Fast forward to this week, and we are enjoying spring like temperatures.  Whatever weather Mother Nature brings us, Monmouth County is always prepared to handle it.  Our crews were out round the clock, preparing ahead of Jonas by pretreating and brining all of the county roads, and of course keeping up throughout the storm with plowing and snow removal. We even assisted several municipalities in keeping up with the accumulations as we are always partners in providing services when requested.

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Pregnant officer who alleged discrimination gets $51K

OCEAN TOWNSHIP — A township police officer who alleges she was discriminated against during her pregnancy will receive a $51,000 judgment from the township. Kathleen J. Delanoy, an officer on the Ocean Township force for 13 years, said in a lawsuit the department wrote a set of guidelines after her pregnancy in July 2011 barring her… Read the rest of this entry »

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Golden, Peters, Arnone and DiMaso Announce Reelection Campaign

Sheriff Shaun Golden and Freeholder Director Tom Arnone

Before an enthusiastic crowd of over 600 Monmouth County supporters at the Eagle Oaks Country Club in Farmingdale, Sheriff (and County GOP Chairman) Shaun Golden announced that he, Freeholders Tom Arnone and Serena DiMaso, and Surrogate Rosemarie Peters are all running for reelection in November.

“We don’t need to make Monmouth County great again,” Golden declared with a reference to Donald Trump’s campaign slogan, “Monmouth County is great!”

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10K BAGS OF HEROIN SEIZED IN KEYPORT PARKING LOT

FREEHOLD – Investigators seized 10,000 bags of heroin with an estimated street value of as much as $100,000, as part of an undercover operation that culminated in the arrests of two New York City women, announced Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni.

Vikky V. Morel, 26, and Niudis Vazquez-Moncion, 34, both of the Bronx in New York City, were arrested Tuesday afternoon when they delivered the large quantity of heroin to undercover detectives in the parking lot of a supermarket on Route 36 in Keyport. Both women are charged with third degree Possession of Heroin and first degree Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute and are being held in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, Freehold Township, in lieu of bail. Morel is being held on $325,000 bail, with no option to post 10 percent, and a required bail source hearing.  Vazquez-Moncion is being held on $250,000 bail, with no option to post 10 percent, and a required bail source hearing.  A bail source hearing is conducted at the request of the prosecutor or judge as a means to ensure that the funds used by a defendant to post bail were not acquired as a result of criminal or unlawful conduct.

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Monmouth County Issues Health Alerts

The Monmouth County Health Department announced today that it is monitoring the worldwide spread of the Zika virus and locally, an outbreak of gastrointestinal (GI) illinesses.

The department urges residents to stay home if ill and to be diligent about hand washing especially after using the bathroom and before eating.

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Prosecutor seeks additional victims of Middletown con man

Christopher D. Biello. photo via facebook

The Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office is concerned that a Middletown con man may have fleeced far more people than they already have identified.

Christopher D. Biello, 43, of Coe Place in the Port Monmouth section of the township, was arrested last week and charged with 14 crimes including Theft by Deception, Impersonation, Fraudulent Use of a Credit Card, Forgery and Falsifying Records following a year-long investigation.

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