Highlands Man Rescued By U.S. Coast Guard

Dylan Gowan. photo via facebook

Dylan Gowan, 19, of Highlands, was located off of Sandy Hook, oceanside, according the the U.S. Coast Guard-Sandy Hook Station.

Gowan was rescued by the Coast Guard at 6:30 a.m.  He is on land and healthy, according to Coast Guard personnel.

Gowan was reported missing to the Highlands Police at 9:18 p.m. on Tuesday night.  The Sandy Hook Coast Guard station received the report at 9:48 p.m and searched throughout the night for the young man.

An unconfirmed report shared with MMM indicated that Gowan had left Brooklyn, NY on a jetski at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday after driving to the New York borough to assist a friend who had run out of gas after riding a jetski  accross the NY-NJ Habor Outer Gateway .  Gowan reportedly headed back to NJ on the jetski while his friend drove the car home.

Gowan is the son of Kerry Gowan, the well know animal control officer in Middletown, Highlands and other Monmouth County towns.

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Coast Guard Searching For Highlands Man

Dylan Gowan. photo via facebook

Update:  Dylan was found alive by the U.S. Coast Guard at 6:30 a.m. this morning!

Highlands, NJ- The U.S Coast Guard-Sandy Hook Station, is conducting a search over night for Dylan Gowan, 19, of Highlands.

Gowan reportedly left Brooklyn, NY on a jetski, heading home to Highlands via the New York-New Jersey Harbor Outer Gateway at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday evening August 11.  He was reported missing to the Highlands Police at 9:18 p.m. and the Sandy Hook Coast Guard Station received the report at 9:48 p.m.   Coast Guard personnel told MMM that a boat was searching for Gowan overnight.

Dylan is the son of Jamie and Kerry Gowan.  Kerry is the well known animal control officer in Middletown, Highlands and other Monmouth County towns.

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Greg’s List: Things to do in Monmouth County this weekend, July 31-August 2, 2015

By Greg Kelly

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Friday, July 31

• Manasquan Fireman’s Fair – MORE INFO
• Shakespeare by the Sea (Spring Lake) – MORE INFO
• A Doll’s House by Center Players (Freehold) – MORE INFO
• “Pharoah Phan Phestival” at Monmouth Park (Oceanport) – MORE INFO
• The Rockin’ Tale of Snow White by Spotlight Players (Matawan) – MORE INFO
• Clam Festival ’15 (Highlands) – MORE INFO
• Long Branch Carnival – MORE INFO
• Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Week – MORE INFO

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Highlands Man Surprised To Find Himself In Christie For President Ad

Governor Chris Christie released the first ad of his fledgling presidential campaign today.  The thirty second spot is aimed at New Hampshire primary voters and will air on Boston, MA and Manchester, NH television and cable outlets, according to a report on NJ.com.  Christie’s campaign will spend $500,000 to distribute the ad over the next four weeks, according to the report.

Monmouth County restaurateur Leo Cervantes, the owner of Chilango’s in Highlands and LaPlaya in Keansburg was surprised to find himself featured in the ad.

Cervantes appears 5 seconds into the ad and is the first face featured after Christie’s.  He had no idea he was in the ad when contacted by MoreMonmouthMusings.

“I endorsed Christie for his reelection as governor,” Cervantes said, “I did a commercial for him and was part of his Hispanic outreach, but I have not heard from his presidential campaign. Should I sue them?” he asked jokingly.

Cervantes said he has not made a decision on who to support for president in 2016. “I was just talking to my daughter about this.  I know the candidates are Bush, Hillary, Trump and some others, but I really haven’t focused on it yet.”

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Cinco de Donald: A MexiCan Celebration

Updated with video

When Leo Cervantes is confronted by a difficult circumstance, he looks for the opportunity it presents.

When the waters of Superstorm Sandy receded from Highlands, Cervantes and his staff at Chilango’s recovered the non-spoiled inventory from their destroyed Bay Avenue restaurant and invited the entire town to a free dinner that they prepared and served at Henry Hudson Regional High School which was serving as a shelter for hundreds of residents displaced by the storm.

When Donald Trump disparaged Mexicans during his presidential candidacy announcement last week, Leo, who immigrated from Neza, a tough town outside of Mexico City in 1989 and became a naturalized United States citizen in 2008, shook off the insult and created an opportunity.

Sunday, July 5th is Cinco de Donald at Leo’s two Monmouth County Mexican restaurants, Chilango’s in Highlands and the newly opened LaPlaya in Keansburg.

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Will Sandy recovery help or hurt Christie? | Di Ionno

Today, Jon Bon Jovi is hosting a $1,000-a-plate fundraiser for Hillary Clinton in his French Chateau overlooking the Navesink River. It’s a mile from Jyll Jakes’ neighborhood in Sea Bright, where every other house remains boarded up. “It’s a still mess down here. I think people have forgotten how bad it is,” said Jakes, who credits… Read the rest of this entry »

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Father shot dead in hostage standoff had domestic violence arrests, records show

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Highlands Man Gets 121 months for child porn

Layne Bracht

Layne Bracht, 32, of Highlands, was sentenced to 121 months in federal prison today for uploading images of child sexual abuse to an online file-sharing network, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

A repeat offender who was convicted in 2006 of possession of child pornography, Bracht admitted in October of 2013 that he knowingly placed images and videos depicting child sexual abuse into shared folders that others could access via a peer-to-peer network. Special agents of the FBI executed a search warrant at his residence in Highlands on Jan. 15, 2014 and seized digital evidence that contained numerous videos and images depicting child sexual abuse, including material involving prepubescent minors and sadistic or masochistic conduct. The digital evidence seized included three files previously downloaded from Bracht by law enforcement agents working in an undercover capacity on the peer-to-peer network.  Brach has been in federal custody since his January 2014 arrest. He pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joseph E. Irenas on December 2, 2014.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Irenas sentenced Bracht to serve 15 years of supervised release.

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Valentine’s Day-Presidents Day

HighlandsNJFlowers.com

Valentine’s Day is this coming Saturday. Monday is Presidents Day.  If you have not taken down your Christmas decorations, it’s time.

For couples who share Monmouth County Democratic Chairman Vin Gopal’s admiration for Essex County, Newark is offering vacant lots for $1000.  Couples (of any gender mix) can show up at City Hall on Saturday from 9am to noon with $500 to secure their plot.  The other $500 is due at closing.   The catch?  The couples have to build a home on the property and live in it for five years.

Ladies, you don’t have to get your guy a present. You are a gift.  But if you want to, a new HD TV is acceptable.  Head over to Airport Plaza in Hazlet and visit IEI for the best selection and pricing.   Guys, don’t even think about getting your love a TV for Valentine’s Day.

At the very least, guys, you must get you lover flowers and/or chocolate.  Good news! You can buy those right now from MMM advertisers InTheGarden in Highlands for flowers and Suzi’s Sweet Shoppe in Middletown for chocolate.

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Law Enforcement needs help identifying body that washed ashore in Highlands a year ago

A white male in his mid-20’s washed ashore at the Gateway Marina in Highlands on December 31, 2013.  A year and 12 days later, the State Police and the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office have yet to identify the body.

Investigators are now circulating a composite sketch of the the young man may have looked like at the time of his death. Facial features, hair length and coloring may vary.

A forensic examination concluded the man is not of American Indian, Japanese, Chinese or Guatemalan nationalities.

A joint investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the New Jersey State Police has found no matches for the DNA Profile of the man in the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), and there have been no missing persons reported for anyone matching the description of the deceased man.

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