New Jersey
OSHA investigates deaths of Amazon workers in New Jersey
Federal work-safety investigators are trying into the demise of an Amazon employee and an damage that doubtlessly led to the demise of one other worker, including to a probe already underway following a 3rd fatality through the firm’s annual Prime Day procuring occasion in mid-July.
All three Amazon employees died throughout the previous month and had been employed at firm amenities in New Jersey.
The brand new Occupational Well being and Security Administration investigations are placing contemporary scrutiny on Amazon’s damage charges and workplace-safety procedures, which have lengthy been criticized by labor and security advocates as insufficient.
Division of Labor spokesperson Denisha Braxton confirmed Thursday that the most-recent fatality happened final week at an Amazon facility in Monroe Township, about 20 miles (35 kilometers) northeast of Trenton. The second probe is trying right into a July 24 accident at an Amazon facility in Robbinsville. The employee concerned in that accident died three days later, in line with Braxton.
In an announcement, Robbinsville Police Chief Michael Polaski stated police responded to the warehouse, referred to as PNE5, on July 24 after receiving a report {that a} employee fell from a three-foot (one-meter) ladder and struck his head.
Polaski stated the employee was aware and alert when police arrived. However police had been instructed CPR was performed on the particular person by different employees previous to their arrival, he stated. The particular person was transported to a hospital and OSHA was notified of the incident on the identical day, he added.
Police in Monroe Township didn’t instantly reply for a request for touch upon the incident there.
The 2 most up-to-date deaths had been first reported by the USA In the present day Community.
OSHA officers declined to offer extra details about any of the deaths, citing the open investigations. The company has as much as six month to finish every probe.
Sam Stephenson, a spokesperson for Seattle-based Amazon, stated in an announcement the corporate was “deeply saddened by the passing of our colleagues and provide our condolences to their household and buddies.”
“Our investigations are ongoing and we’re cooperating with OSHA, which is conducting its personal opinions of the occasions, because it usually does in these conditions,” Stephenson stated.
Final month, OSHA launched one other investigation right into a employee fatality at an Amazon warehouse within the New Jersey city of Carteret through the firm’s Prime Day procuring occasion, which turned out to be the most important within the firm’s historical past. Federal officers have not launched extra particulars in regards to the demise, however information stories have recognized the employee as 42-year-old Rafael Reynaldo Mota Frias.
A spokesperson for Amazon stated the corporate’s inside investigation into the Carteret demise reveals it “was not a work-related incident, and as a substitute was associated to a private medical situation.”
“OSHA is at present investigating the incident, and, based mostly upon the proof at present obtainable to us, we totally anticipate that it’s going to attain the identical conclusion,” the spokesperson stated.
Information of the deaths comes amid broader scrutiny into the corporate’s operations. In late July, OSHA officers inspected Amazon amenities in New York, Illinois and Florida after receiving referrals alleging well being and security violations from the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York. The civil division of the U.S. legal professional’s workplace can be investigating security hazards at Amazon warehouses and “fraudulent conduct designed to cover accidents from OSHA and others,” in line with a spokesperson for the workplace.
New Jersey
Fair Lawn man, NY associate facing civil action by NJ AG for defrauding investor
3-minute read
A Bergen County man and his New York business associate are facing a civil enforcement action filed by the New Jersey Bureau of Securities with the Division of Consumer Affairs for defrauding at least one New Jersey investor in an investment scheme tied to a job recruiting software service that they were allegedly trying to grow, according to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General.
Michael Lakshin. of Fair Lawn, and Edward Aizman. of Brooklyn, as well as their company Bowmo, Inc. used “fraud and deception,” allegedly convincing one of Lakshin’s childhood friends to liquidate her retirement fund and invest in their start-up business venture, according to a civil complaint filed in Bergen County on Friday. They then allegedly diverted most of the funds for their own personal use including cash advances, hotel stays and purchases at car dealerships and designer stores among other expenditures.
“The defendants in this case shamelessly bankrolled their lavish lifestyles with someone else’s hard-earned retirement savings,” said Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. “The lawsuit announced today sends a clear message that this kind of blatant exploitation of investors will not go unpunished in New Jersey.”
The complaint alleges, according to the Office of the Attorney General, that from April through August 2020, Lakshin, Aizman and Bowmo (through Lakshin and Aizman), offered and sold at least $84,681.19 of Bowmo’s securities in the form of a convertible note to at least one NJ investor.
They told the investor that the Bowmo note was an investment opportunity which would provide her a “significantly higher return” than her retirement savings. They allegedly told her that Bowmo was successful, bringing in a lot of money through its success and that she could profit by investing her funds into the company.
Lakshin also allegedly leveraged their childhood connection to convince her to invest. After learning about the investor’s retirement account, Lakshin allegedly pressured her to liquidate the account for the purpose of buying the Bowmo note.
Lakshin assured the investor that she would “realistically” be able to earn “A MUCH GREATER return,” through a series of text messages, falsely informed the investor that she should not have any taxes or penalties withheld when withdrawing funds from her account, and assured her that Bowmo would reimburse her for any taxes or penalties that would have to be paid as a result of the liquidation.
On June 25, 2020, the investor liquidated her retirement account. This liquidation included two charges and exposed her to paying taxes on the funds as she was not “rolling them over to another qualified retirement plan,” according to the Office of the Attorney General .
On July 2, 2020, the investor met with Lakshin and Aizman and signed a Bowmo subscription agreement. She wired $84,681.19 from her bank account to a Bowmo bank account controlled by Lakshin and Aizman later that month.
A Bowmo investor package provided to the investor prior to investing said that funds would be used to further develop Bowmo’s software, expand its marketing business, and make strategic hires among other business-related ventures.
Instead, the defendants allegedly transferred the funds to bank accounts held by a seperate and unrelated entity and misused the funds by diverting them for personal and non-business-related purposes.
The lawsuit seeks a court order to permanently ban Bowmo, its president and chairman Lakshin, and its founder and CEO Aizman, from issuing, offering, or selling securities in New Jersey, according to the Office of the Attorney General. It also asks the court to assess civil monetary penalties, restitution plus interest and expenses for the victim, and disgorgement of all funds and profits gained from the scheme.
According to Bureau Chief Elizabeth M. Harris, this case “serves as a sobering example of why it’s vitally important to investigate investment products, even those offered by someone you know and trust.”
She continued, “It’s also an opportunity to remind our residents that while fraudulent investment schemes come in a variety of forms, the pressure to act fast to avoid missing out on a hot investment is a universal red flag of fraud that should not be ignored. In addition to doing their due diligence before investing, we urge New Jerseyans to follow their instincts when a transaction doesn’t pass the smell test.”
Investors can obtain information about any financial professional doing business to or from New Jersey by visiting the Bureau’s website at www.NJSecurities.gov, or calling the Bureau within New Jersey at 1-866-446-8378 or from outside New Jersey at 973-504-3600.
New Jersey
Surprise 7 to 11 inches of snow hit these N.J. towns. Latest forecast.
New Jersey
New Jersey winemaker says drought helps the grapes, but he’s grateful for the rain this week
The much-anticipated rain finally made its way into the Philadelphia region this week.
For many gardens, nurseries and farms, the rain was needed.
But in Hammonton, New Jersey, Sharrott Winery says the drought wasn’t all that bad.
Sprawling on 34 acres, 22 of those under vine, the owner of the South Jersey winery says the drought conditions actually helped their vines.
Owner and winemaker Larry Sharrott said in the spring, the rain helped their vines grow.
Come August, the rain tapered off and the dry weather from there on out was used to their advantage.
“For grapes, if it’s dry starting in August and then running through the entire harvest season, that’s really good,” Sharrott said. “It helps concentrate the juice basically, so especially with red wine it makes a much more robust red wine. They take on much nicer fruit flavors.”
Sharrott said the team was also happy when it finally rained after the long stretch.
He said it was perfect timing because the vines could use a boost of hydration.
“But the fact that we have some rain now is really good for the vines because at this point they really need a good drink so they can begin shutting down for winter. We want them to be nice and hearty by the time we get the cold January and February temperatures,” he said
And if you are looking on the bright side, too, Sharrott say they are looking forward to future wines.
“We are going to have some great wines in a couple years when these come out of barrel,” he said.
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