New Jersey
Mail stolen from 6 USPS mailboxes across Fort Lee, N.J. Map shows where residents need to be wary
Police are investigating after mail was stolen from half a dozen United States Postal Service mailboxes in Fort Lee, New Jersey, over the weekend.
It comes amid recent reports of mail security issues across the Tri-State Area.
Fort Lee Police issue warning for residents who used blue mailboxes
Fort Lee Police say Sunday morning, a resident contacted the authorities after noticing a blue USPS mailbox was unsecured, open and empty.
“They did a little canvassing of some other mailboxes in the area, in the borough, and realized there was probably about a half dozen other mailboxes in the same situation, where the door was open and all the mail was removed,” Fort Lee Police Chief Matthew Hintze said.
Hintze said Fort Lee Police launched a joint investigation with USPS inspectors and discovered six mailboxes were targeted across Fort Lee. The boxes were located at:
- 1580 Lemoine Ave.
- 231 Main St.
- 309 Main St.
- 1213 Anderson Ave.
- 1475 Bergen Blvd.
- Abbott Boulevard/Columbia Avenue
Investigators believe the master key or locks on the mailboxes were somehow compromised. They also believe the thief or thieves were likely looking for personal information to commit fraud.
Police say anyone who dropped mail containing sensitive information in any of the impacted mailboxes after 3 p.m. on Sept. 20 should be on the lookout for suspicious activity.
“Please monitor all your financial accounts, check your bank accounts. If you really want to do due diligence, conduct a credit report, maybe a credit freeze,” Hintze said. “If you see anything suspicious or fraudulent, please come in to the Fort Lee Police Department and make that report.”
The investigation is ongoing.
Mail-related crime across New York and New Jersey
This is just the latest mail-related crime reported in the Tri-State Area in recent weeks.
Earlier this month, two Long Island business owners said they lost nearly $3,000 after someone apparently fished checks they had mailed out of a mailbox, washed off the ink, and rewrote the checks.
“I went to the post office to file a complaint, and they said this is an everyday occurrence. It’s constantly happening,” business owner Rich Miller said at the time.
They were later reimbursed, but they weren’t the only recent victims of check washing. Another Long Island resident said she lost $20,000 after three checks she wrote were stolen and cashed by a thief.
“What the Postal Police had showed me is that they literally took Wite-Out and they erased the payable to,” Jean Gioglio-Goehring said.
Experts advise paying bills electronically to avoid falling victim to crimes like these.
Police say another way to keep your mail safe is to bring it inside the post office instead of just dropping it one of the blue mailboxes, even if the boxes are right outside the building.
“The only way you’re going to be safe is to take the mail actually into the post office during business hours and then you know your mail is safe. Because if you deposit it in a mailbox after hours, then you’re certainly at risk,” Tenafly resident Neil Taylor said.
New Jersey
Husband of slain New Jersey mom begs for help in newly released 911 call | Fox News Video
Former homicide detective Brian Foley joins ‘Fox & Friends Weekend’ to provide analysis on Conor Hanlon’s 911 call after finding his wife, Brooke, stabbed to death.
Former homicide detective Brian Foley provides expert insights into the newly released 911 call from Conor Hanlon, whose wife, New Jersey therapist Brooke Hanlon, was found stabbed to death. Foley analyzes the husband’s emotional state and the police’s approach, noting the case’s ‘suspicious’ designation 13 minutes into the call.
New Jersey
NJ firefighter dies after crash responding to fire call
A young firefighter died two weeks after being badly hurt in a crash while responding to a fire call, according to the Malaga Fire Company.
Robert (Bobby) Reider, 23, was driving north along Delsea Drive while trying to get to the scene of fire on Saturday, June 27 when his car went off the road, officials said.
When first responders got to the scene of the crash, they found Reider trapped in his car and worked to remove him.
Reider was then taken by helicopter to a nearby hospital where he was treated for severe and traumatic injuries.
Weeks later, on July 10 around 4:30 a.m., Reider died from his injuries while still in the hospital.
The Malaga Fire Company says that Reider joined their team in 2018 when he was just 16 as a junior firefighter.
He then went on to earn a certificate at Fire 1 at the Salem County Fire Academy in 2022.
New Jersey
NJ Legislators Are Considering a Bill That Could Ban Tesla Robotaxis Due to Their Tech Choice
New Jersey lawmakers are deliberating on a law that would create a three-year autonomous vehicle pilot program in the state, but Tesla might be banned from participating altogether over a technical choice made by the Texas-based carmaker for its self-driving vehicles.
The bill, officially known as S1677, would establish autonomous vehicle testing requirements with the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) and the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission. One of these proposed requirements is that autonomous vehicle operators use camera-based technology and two additional forms of sensor tech, such as lidar or radar. Of course, Tesla’s autonomous vehicle technology is purely camera-based, meaning the brand could be banned from testing in New Jersey.
The text of the bill is fairly straightforward, requiring prospective autonomous operators to submit a “law enforcement interaction plan” and detail redundant safety systems, crash-avoidance technology, and data recording capabilities. The specific language that would ban Tesla’s system requires autonomous operators to “be equipped with crash-avoidance systems, including a camera system and two distinct sensing modalities that are capable of detecting and tracking obstacles in the event of failure of the camera system.” The bill also favors keeping traditional steering wheel and pedal controls available. While initial testing would be completed with human safety operators, the bill would allow fully autonomous operation once certain metrics, such as 50,000 crash-free miles, are met.
The decision to require both camera- and sensor-based technology is not a coincidence, according to The Verge. “This is not anti-Tesla. I’m pro-New Jersey safety,” Democratic state senator Andrew Zwicker, the bill’s primary sponsor and a physicist by trade, said to The Verge. “At this point, I don’t think the evidence is sufficient that a single sensor with software can handle situations that humans can.”
Tesla is, unsurprisingly, upset about this development, and the company is fighting back. The automaker’s public policy platform, Engage Tesla, features a call to action for Tesla owners to contact members of the New Jersey Legislature to oppose the bill, with the plea claiming the autonomous vehicle testing program is the opposite of progress, and saying that Tesla would be legally barred from testing in the Garden State. Statistics about roadway death rates in New Jersey and denying freedom of movement for elderly populations are also included.
“Rather than prioritizing real safety outcomes and performance, the bill specifically bans Tesla from the New Jersey market,” the site reads. “Every arbitrary roadblock is a delay for the people who need this life-changing technology most. Legislation that bans Tesla’s proven AV technology from the market is not caution — it’s anti-competitive favoritism that will cause New Jersey to fall behind while other states move forward.”
The bill, introduced on January 16, is currently under consideration by the New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee. The bill’s language closely mirrors talking points from the nonprofit SAVE-US, which is lobbying for stronger oversight of autonomous vehicle testing. New Jersey is not the only state pondering additional autonomous testing regulation; New York legislators are working on similar legislation. Just yesterday, federal safety regulators called out autonomous vehicle operators like Waymo for interfering with first responders.
A New York transplant hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Emmet White has a passion for anything that goes: cars, bicycles, planes, and motorcycles. After learning to ride at 17, Emmet worked in the motorcycle industry before joining Autoweek in 2022 and Road & Track in 2024. The woes of alternate side parking have kept his fleet moderate, with a 2014 Volkswagen Jetta GLI and a BMW 318i E30 street parked in his Queens community.
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