Federal prosecutors interviewed Chris Christie in bridge scandal probe, report says

TRENTON — Federal prosecutors interviewed Gov. Chris Christie last month as part of the ongoing investigation into the George Washington Bridge lane closure controversy, according to a published report. The governor, who’s weighing a presidential campaign, met with prosecutors and the FBI for more than two hours, according to ABC news. The meeting took place at… Read the rest of this entry »

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U.S. Attorney issues new subpoenas in Christie investigation

MMM photo by Art Gallagher

Federal prosecutors have widened their investigation into the relationship between Governor Chris Christie’s office and his 2013 reelection campaign, according to a report at The Wall Street Journal.

WSJ reports that U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman’s office has subpoenaed documents related to government meetings that Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop claims were canceled after he declined to endorse Christie’s reelection.

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South Jersey Man Gets 6 Hours In Jail For Shooting Hawks

Robert Losasso

Robert Losasso, a 70 year old Somers Point man, was sentenced to 6 hours in jail today on charges that the shot and killed or attempted to kill four species of hawk protected by federal law, U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman announced.

Matthew Reilly, Deputy Public Affairs Officer for Fishman’s office laughed when we asked if Losasso could be released before lunch on good behavior.

Losasso admitted that he fatally shot or attempted to shoot red-tailed, sharp-shinned, red shouldered and Cooper’s hawks on several occasions. These species are among the tens of thousands of birds of prey that migrate every year from Canada along the Atlantic Flyway through New Jersey. Losasso also admitted that he didn’t have any permit to shoot the birds.

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Large Heroin Trafficking Ring Busted

U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman

Fourteen members of a major Jersey shore drug trafficking organization (DTO) were arrested this morning by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The DTO is alleged to be a large-scale supplier of heroin and cocaine in Monmouth, Ocean and Middlesex counties.

U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman joined representatives of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the DEA in announcing the arrests at the Prosecutor’s satellite office in Asbury Park.

A total of 22 defendants were charged in two complaints. 7 remain at large and one has been in custody since September on other charges.

Herve Cadet, a/k/a “Gotti,” a/k/a “Bro,” 29, of Neptune and Sayreville, New Jersey; and Eric Smith, a/k/a “EV,” a/k/a “E,” 42, of Manchester, New Jersey are the alleged leaders of the DTO. Smith is the defendant who has been incarcerated since September.

“The criminal complaints describe drug trafficking operations that have been responsible for sizable quantities of illegal narcotics on the streets of Asbury Park, Neptune Township, and the surrounding towns,” U.S. Attorney Fishman said. “We hope and expect that today’s arrests will make a real difference to the drug trafficking trade in these counties. This is not the last that you will hear from us in this fight.”
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Report: Christie is U.S. Attorney’s target

MMM photo/Art Gallagher

U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman is leaning on former Port Authority officials David Samson, Bill Baroni and David Wildstein and Charles McKenna, Governor Chris Christie’s former Chief Counsel, to”filp” on Christie, according to a report published on Esquire today.

Esquire’s two anonymous sources “with intimate knowledge” of Fishman’s investigation into “Bridgegate” said that Samson, Baroni and Wildstein each face “near-certain” indictment.

Esquire says that Baroni and Wildstein have implicated Samson and that “if Sampson doesn’t give Fishman Christie, Sampson is toast.”

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O’Scanlon: Red Light Camera Corruption Warrants Investigations By Fishman, Wisniewski

Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth) said today that he is asking U.S Attorney Paul Fishman to open criminal investigations into the municipal clients of Redflex Traffic Systems, an Arizona based red light camera company, due to legal claims by a former executive that the company routinely bribed municipal officials in 13 states, including New Jersey, in order to obtain the lucrative contracts to operate camera systems that issue summonses for red light infractions.

Additionally, O’Scanlon is writing to Assembly Transportation Committee Chairman John Wisniewski to ask that the committee open an investigation into New Jersey’s red light camera program in light of the recent bribery allegations and scientific proof commissioned by O’Scanlon that red light cameras are a detriment to public safety that are rigged to cheat motorists.

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Christie bridge scandal: Despite U.S. Attorney’s subpoenas, N.J. lawmakers press forward

Christie bridge scandal: Despite U.S. Attorney’s subpoenas, N.J. lawmakers press forward (via NJ.com)

TRENTON — State lawmakers leading the legislative investigation of the George Washington Bridge lane closures today said they plan to proceed with their probes even as the U.S. Attorney is dropping subpoenas in the case. State Assemblyman John Wisniweski…

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Man behind the Chris Christie probe: U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman leads federal inquiry

Man behind the Chris Christie probe: U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman leads federal inquiry (via NJ.com)

New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman has convicted a trio of Wall Street insiders from New York in what has been called one of the largest and longest-running insider trading frauds ever discovered in the United States. At the same time, he’s corralled…

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