New Jersey
NJ officials launch push to protect children online this summer
NEWARK, New Jersey (WABC) — With school vacations just around the corner, officials in New Jersey kicked off Internet Safety Month Friday with a renewed push to keep young people safe online this summer.
Representatives from the U.S Department of Homeland Security joined U.S. Attorney Phillip Sellinger, NJ State Police Superintendent Pat Callahan and other law enforcement officials in Newark.
They talked about ways to protect children online and warned parents about the dangers of kids’ unsupervised use of electronic devices, including smart phones, tables and gaming devices.
“With just a click, kids have the world at their fingertips,” said Homeland Security Special Agent Ricky Patel, “which unfortunately includes the good and the bad.”
The federal, state and county law enforcement officials reminded parents how easy it is for adult internet predators to pose as young people and solicit sexually explicit photos and videos.
“In 2022 alone, task forces around the country investigated 167,000 cybercrimes against children, where predators entice kids to produce and send sexually explicit images of them over the internet,” said Sellinger.
They also discussed even more serious cases of human trafficking, sexual abuse and illegal drug sales to minors that their agencies frequently encounter – and the length to which predators often go to target kids.
“We have seen those willing to leave countries thousands of miles away to see a minor,” said Callahan, describing investigators’ undercover sting operations, “only to be met by undercover officers when they get off a plane.”
These experts advise parents to keep an open dialogue with their kids – and not to assume parental controls on the devices are adequate.
“You can’t say, ‘Well, I only let my kid go on for one app,’” said Derek Nececkas, interim director of the NJ Division of Criminal Justice. “Any app capable of communication is capable of being used in an abusive way.”
Selliger reminded parent that connections with strangers can happen not just through text messages on phones, but also through chat features in video games, and video messaging on phones, computers and tablets.
He and other officials stressed the importance of parents knowing everyone with whom their children are communicating with online.
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New Jersey
New Jersey woman killed in hit-and-run crash; investigation underway
Detectives are investigating after a woman was killed in a hit-and-run crash on Wednesday afternoon in Camden, New Jersey, Camden County Prosecutors said.
According to prosecutors, on Wednesday, Sept. 25, around 3:21 p.m., officers were dispatched to 7th St. and Tulip St. for a report of a pedestrian struck by a vehicle.
The victim — now identified as Carla Mahan, 41, of Camden — was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 4:06 p.m., prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said this investigation is active and ongoing at this time.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Daniel Crawford of the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Unit at 856-580-2223 and Detective Andrew Mogck of the Camden County Police Department at 609-519 8588.
New Jersey
NJ man caught with massive cache of illegal guns, knives and explosives thanks to his own shameless Facebook posts
A New Jersey man’s shameless posts on Facebook led police to uncover a massive cache of illegal guns, knives, and explosives stashed inside the suspect’s home on a quiet suburban block this week.
Kyle Arena, 35, of Totowa, NJ, is facing multiple firearms and weapons charges stemming from a home raid Tuesday that yielded rifles, handguns, dozens of knives, ninja stars, brass knuckles, 129 fully loaded illegal high-capacity magazines, thousands of rounds of ammunition and even four explosives, Totowa police said.
An anonymous tipster alerted cops to Arena’s concerning social media posts and alleged arsenal of guns and investigators had to look no further than his Facebook page for probable cause.
Arena made a habit of flashing his guns online and “posting questionable content in various Facebook groups,” according to authorities.
In one post, he pointed a gun at people while driving by in his car. In other posts, he shared pics of illegal items such as silencers, police said.
In another photo, Arena can be seen holding up a rifle to his square black-rimmed glasses, pretending to take aim at an unseen target.
The emailed tip included screengrabs of Arena’s Facebook posts to a group called “Meal Team 6.1 Mid-Tier Main Group,” according to authorities. That private group of gun-enthusiasts boasts 14,500 members.
“Meal Team 6.1 Mid-Tier Main Group” has a number of rules posted to their homepage, including “DO NOT USE FB REPORTING OPTIONS” or face removal. The rule encourages members to eschew Facebook content moderators for fear that any intervention into the private group would result in it being shut down entirely.
With the multitude of evidence from his social posts, Totowa police were granted a search and seize warrant called a “Temporary Extreme Risk Protection Order” by a judge to search through the Lincoln Avenue home where Arena lives with his parents.
Investigators found the huge arsenal of weapons hidden inside a crawl space inside the home and bomb-sniffing dogs discovered four explosive devices, police said.
Nearby residents told ABC7 they couldn’t believe one of their neighbors was hoarding the stockpile of deadly weapons.
“I was in shock,” Ciro Abdondanza told the station. “I never would have expected anything of that magnitude would happen in Totowa.”
“I couldn’t believe it,” Carmine Cifalvi added. “That’s just crazy. What’s he starting his own army or something?”
Officers seized all the items and arrested Arena without incident. He is being held by the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office and faces multiple illegal firearms-related charges. He is due in court on Monday.
The suspect’s 66-year-old father, Felix Arena was also taken into custody during the search. He was charged with disorderly conduct, terroristic threats, and resisting arrest.
New Jersey
New Jersey hits pause on an offshore wind farm that can't find turbine blades
New Jersey hit the pause button Wednesday on an offshore wind energy project that is having a hard time finding someone to manufacture blades for its turbines.
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities granted Leading Light Wind a pause on its project through Dec. 20 while its developers seek a source for the crucial components.
The project, from Chicago-based Invenergy and New York-based energyRE, would be built 40 miles (65 kilometers) off Long Beach Island and would consist of up to 100 turbines, enough to power 1 million homes.
Leading Light was one of two projects that the state utilities board chose in January. But just three weeks after that approval, one of three major turbine manufacturers, GE Vernova, said it would not announce the kind of turbine Invenergy planned to use in the Leading Light Project, according to the filing with the utilities board.
A turbine made by manufacturer Vestas was deemed unsuitable for the project, and the lone remaining manufacturer, Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, told Invenergy in June that it was substantially increasing the cost of its turbine offering, Invenergy said.
That left the project without a turbine supplier.
“The stay enables continued discussions with the BPU and supply chain partners regarding the industry-wide market shifts,” Invenergy said in a statement. “We will continue to advance project development activities during this time.”
Christine Guhl-Sadovy, president of the utilities board, said the delay will help the project move forward.
“We are committed in New Jersey to our offshore wind goals,” she said. “This action will allow Invenergy to find a suitable wind turbine supplier. We look forward to delivering on the project that will help grow our clean energy workforce and contribute to clean energy generation for the state.”
The delay was the latest setback for offshore wind in New Jersey. The industry is advancing in fits and starts along the U.S. East Coast.
Nearly a year ago, Danish wind energy giant Orsted scrapped two offshore wind farms planned off New Jersey’s coast, saying they were no longer financially feasible.
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