Northeast
Atlantic City fatal stabbings ignite calls for increased surveillance in gambling resorts
- On New Year’s Day in Atlantic City, one man died after being fatally stabbed, while another man was found bleeding to death near the Boardwalk.
- The city has been addressing concerns about public safety by implementing a $5 million state-financed program to install additional security cameras.
- The recent deaths follow a trend of increased major crimes in 2023 compared to the previous year, including a rise in homicides.
One man was fatally stabbed while another was found bleeding to death on New Year’s Day in Atlantic City, the gambling resort that’s currently adding hundreds of new security cameras to the thousands already keeping an electric eye on this busy tourist destination.
The Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office said police responded to a 911 call at 6:15 a.m. Monday of a man found bleeding on a street near the beach who later died at a hospital. Little more than an hour later, police got a second 911 call about a 22-year-old man was pronounced dead from multiple stab wounds near the Boardwalk.
The deaths do not appear to be related, and no arrests had been made as of Tuesday afternoon, authorities said. But it is cases like these that have raised calls for new cameras amid heightened demands for increased public security in a gambling resort visited by 27 million people a year.
ATLANTIC CITY’S DECISION TO NARROW MAIN ROAD SPARKS TRAFFIC SAFETY CONCERNS
In October, the city announced a $5 million state-financed program to install 200 cameras with five independent lenses apiece throughout city neighborhoods. Police Chief James Sarkos says that’s akin to deploying 1,000 new cameras to supplement the 3,000 public and private ones already up and running.
A video monitor inside the surveillance center of the Atlantic City, N.J., police department on Nov. 16, 2023, shows a video recording of the beginning of a fire outside Resorts casino a day earlier. The city plans to add hundreds of additional security cameras to the 3,000 that already keep an electronic eye on the seaside gambling resort. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)
While not enough to cover every inch of the 48-block city, the overwhelming majority of Atlantic City will be covered once the project is completed later this year.
Yet the stakes are high for a resort dependent on tourists and their money; if gamblers, vacationers and others don’t feel safe in Atlantic City, they’ll go elsewhere.
“Public safety is extremely important in Atlantic City,” said Sarkos, who called the cameras “a force multiplier” that extends the reach of officers into spots where they’re not physically present. “It’s a huge investment in public safety, and it’s going to make Atlantic City safer for everybody.”
ATLANTIC CITY MOBILE SUPERMARKET OFFERS RELIEF TO RESIDENTS STRUGGLING WITH FOOD INSECURITY
Neither city police nor the county prosecutor’s office would say whether the network of existing cameras on and near the Boardwalk and on neighborhood streets captured any images that might aid the investigation into the two New Year’s deaths.
A Nov. 7 homicide near Boardwalk Hall also remains unsolved. Authorities also wouldn’t say whether an outdoor security camera mounted on a nearby building yielded anything useful in that investigation.
Statistics provided by the police department show several categories of major crime increased in 2023 compared with the previous year. From Jan. 1 through Nov. 26, there were seven homicides in Atlantic City, compared with six over the same period a year earlier. Aggravated assaults rose from 317 in 2022 to 355 last year, and robberies from 189 to 194 over that same period.
City and state officials have worked hard to address widely held concerns about public safety in Atlantic City, investing millions.
But Associated Press interviews conducted before the latest deaths show that changing perceptions will not happen overnight.
“I don’t believe Atlantic City is safe,” said Leonard Hall of Mullica Hill, New Jersey. “Safe is being able to walk around without your life in increased danger. I’m for more cameras, but that’s not going to stop criminals. Some people say they had a fine experience but that doesn’t take away from the stabbings, shootings, thefts, or assaults that have happened to others.”
However, Ed Jessup of Brooklyn, New York, said he feels safe walking around in Atlantic City, and not just on the Boardwalk.
“I’ve shopped at the outlets, went to dinner and felt fine,” he said. “You just have to be aware of your surroundings after dark.”
Police in Las Vegas, whose population of 646,000 people is 17 times larger than that of Atlantic City and which has more than six times as many casinos, would not discuss that city’s use of security cameras other than to say technology plays an important part in public safety.
Jeff Behm, an Atlantic City resident, called the cameras “a great idea that can only help.”
“Parts of Atlantic City feel safe, but most places do not after dark,” he said. “Of course, if they catch the criminals but they’re back on the streets the next day, the cameras won’t help much.”
Amy Jackson of York, Pennsylvania, said the cameras make her feel safer.
“We might want to advertise that AC has cameras, so think twice before committing a crime,” she said.
The city has had cameras on its Boardwalk since 2016.
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They have not only helped solve numerous crimes, including a near-fatal stabbing, a burglary, and a purse-snatching, but also found lost children and elderly visitors who wandered off. They even thwarted a bogus injury claim in which a man saw a slightly raised board on the walkway, laid down next to it, and called for help, saying he had tripped on it, fallen and injured himself, said Lt. Kevin Fair.
The new cameras, as well as most existing ones, are monitored in real time by a surveillance unit at police headquarters, staffed by retired police officers. Incoming calls for help can be quickly linked to camera feeds showing the area from which the call came, allowing officers to see what is happening before they even arrive.
Though the cameras do not use facial recognition, they can swiftly glean information describing a suspect such as their color of clothing, shoes — or a vehicle associated with a crime.
Private businesses, including the nine casinos, can quickly and easily share their own camera feeds with police when needed, Sarkos added.
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Where is Representative Thomas Kean Jr.?
Lately, curious political watchers have noted where Mr. Kean is not. He seems to be absent on Capitol Hill, where he represents the people of New Jersey’s Seventh District but hasn’t cast a vote in more than two months. Mr. Kean, a Republican, has not been seen on the campaign trail as he runs for re-election in a competitive midterm race.
He has not appeared in pixel form, either: No candid photos have emerged of the incumbent to allay the worries of donors and constituents. Two weeks ago his office released a written statement, attributed to Mr. Kean, explaining that he was dealing with a “medical issue” and would be back “very soon.”
Since then? No reported sightings.
Mr. Kean’s social media accounts have remained active in his prolonged absence. The posts are often written in the first person, but paired with older photos.
“What we are being assured is that his team is carrying the torch,” Tina Shah, who is vying for the chance to unseat Mr. Kean, said on Tuesday at a debate with three other Democrats. “But we elected Tom Kean Jr., not his team.”
Members of Mr. Kean’s team were seated conspicuously in the third row, watching as the Democrats took turns weighing in on their boss’s mysterious absence. Afterward, his chief of staff, Dan Scharfenberger, reiterated a now familiar explanation.
“He’s dealing with a personal health condition, and he’ll be back soon,” Mr. Scharfenberger said in an interview.
When pressed on the nature of the health condition and why Mr. Kean had not been seen in New Jersey or in Washington, Mr. Scharfenberger said, “There’s no cameras where Tom is.”
He declined to elaborate.
National Democratic officials see Mr. Kean’s district — a largely affluent and suburban region that stretches like a girdle across North Jersey from its eastern shoreline to its western border with Pennsylvania — as one of the party’s best pickup opportunities in November. And Democrats had been aggressively targeting his seat well before Mr. Kean began missing votes.
“He’s going to be totally fine, and he’ll be back to a full schedule soon,” Harrison Neely, Mr. Kean’s spokesman, said on Tuesday.
Soon may not be imminent. The Morris County Chamber of Commerce has amended the program for a May 28 breakfast meeting focused on Washington policies, saying that Mr. Kean will no longer be speaking at the event.
“As you no doubt have heard, Congressman Kean will be unable to appear due to his ongoing health concerns,” a notice posted on the chamber’s website states. “We wish him well.”
Mr. Neely had no immediate response on whether the congressman had canceled other similar events.
Democrats vying for the Seventh District seat have seemed cautious about attacking Mr. Kean, perhaps aware of the political risk of going after a man whose condition is not known. But at Tuesday’s debate, a few of them offered some measured criticism about the Republican’s lack of transparency.
“Look, at the end of the day you’re a public servant,” said Brian Varela, who owns child care centers and is campaigning to abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. “And while I don’t think you need to be putting your own personal medical history out there, you at the very least have a responsibility to be communicating with your constituents and with your district.”
Michael Roth, who helped to lead the Small Business Administration during the Biden administration, said most workers would be required to be more transparent with their employers if they needed to take two months off.
“If you were missing work, you would tell your boss,” he said. “And Tom Kean Jr.’s boss is the people.”
Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot who has worked as a strategist for health care companies, avoided discussing Mr. Kean’s absence and instead said the election was about the job Mr. Kean had been doing before he disappeared from public view.
Mr. Kean is the only Republican on the June 2 primary ballot. If he had exited the race at least 62 days before the primary, a three-person team of campaign advisers would have filled the vacancy. Republican leaders from the district’s six counties would select a nominee if he were to drop out after the primary. His aides maintain that the congressman has no plans to bow out.
Leonard Lance, a moderate Republican who lost re-election in the Seventh District in 2018 after five terms in Congress, said the loss of any of the state’s three G.O.P. House members would be a blow to New Jersey’s historically centrist core. But he said he believed Mr. Kean was still the best candidate “by far” to fend off what is likely to be a fierce Democratic challenge.
“I take at face value the statement of his office that he will be back at 100 percent,” Mr. Lance said.
There were no reported sightings of Mr. Kean on Wednesday, the day after the debate. However, the congressman’s X account did post an update on his activities.
“I’m pleased to join the Congressional Crypto Caucus,” the post said. “The United States must lead on digital assets — driving innovation, delivering regulatory clarity and protecting consumers. I look forward to working with this bipartisan group of colleagues to advance that agenda.”
Kirsten Noyes contributed research.
Pittsburg, PA
A Bethel Park homeowner paid a contractor nearly $3,000 to repair his porch. He says no one showed up.
A Bethel Park homeowner says he’s out thousands of dollars after hiring a contractor to replace his front porch.
Jeffrey Markoff says he hired Quaker State Construction and Supply for an $8,500 porch replacement project and paid a $2,833 deposit to secure a spot on the company’s schedule. According to paperwork reviewed by KDKA Investigates, the contract listed an approximate start date in the spring with an estimated completion time of two weeks.
Months later, Markoff says no construction crew ever arrived. He then tried to contact the owner, Gabe Clouse.
“I call the company number, and there’s no answer. The number had been disconnected, called the designer, and he gave me the cell number for the owner,” said Markoff.
When asked if he ever heard back, Markoff responded: “Never heard back and called that number twice.”
Markoff says losing the money has been frustrating.
“It’s money out of your pocket you feel somebody stole from you,” said Markoff.
KDKA Investigates took Markoff’s concerns to attorney Mike Fiffik of the Fiffik Law Group, a LegalShield provider firm, to find out what consumers can do in situations like this.
“In this situation, he has a couple of different options available to him,” said Fiffik. “If he paid the deposit with his credit card, the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act will permit him to submit a dispute.”
That process is known as a chargeback and is generally most effective when initiated within 60 days of receiving the statement. However, Markoff paid by check, meaning that the option was unavailable to him.
Instead, Fiffik recommends several other steps consumers can take:
- Contact local police and report the incident as a theft
- File a complaint with the local magistrate if the amount lost is under $12,000
- File a complaint with the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General
When asked where homeowners should file if the contractor lives elsewhere, Fiffik said, “I would file with the magistrate where the homeowner lives.”
KDKA Investigates also attempted to contact Clouse multiple times, but our messages were not returned.
KDKA Investigates learned Clouse recently took over Quaker State and Supply as the new owner. The previous owner told KDKA he sold the business to Clouse in 2024, when the company still held an A-plus rating with the Better Business Bureau. The business is now listed as closed.
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