2016 Jersey City crime stats; Some good news, some bad

The city has released the 2016 crime statistics and some of the numbers went up but the most important one, murders, went down slightly. The number of shootings were up and thanks to good police work and other factors, the % of closed shooting cases went up to 47.5% from 33.3% in 2015. You can follow this handy link and get the facts on all the crime that was in 2016 and draw your own conclusions as to what worked and what needs more attention.

The knockout game? Really Jersey City?

This shit needs to end now and those associated with it brought to bear...by any means necessary.

Hey Jersey City, let's see what we can't do to boycott the Phebe Nightclub and Restaurant

The owner of Phebe Nightclub and Restaurant, Kenny Frias, has some interesting ideas about how one fits into a community owning a business and all. Frias was arrested for paying off local gas station attendants (Another reason to let Garden Staters pump their own gas right there) to use credit card skimmers wherein Frias would allegedly take a cut of your hard earned do-re-mi when you filled up. What did he do with this money he allegedly stole? Paid some lackeys to go buy booze around the state so he could sell it at, say it together, Phebe Nightclub and Restaurant.

Frias and his accomplices bought goods, including alcohol, at stores around the state, the prosecutor said in statement. He sold the booze at his business, Phebe Nightclub and Restaurant.

Investigators found a credit card reader and writer device, fraudulent credit cards, bogus identification and more than $75,000 after executing search warrants at Frias’ home and club, according to Molinelli.

Super duper! And because we want to give credit where credit is due:

Frias’ girlfriend, Jeanessa Torres, 25, of Clifton, was also arrested and charged with possession of an unlawful weapon for having a knife, authorities said. She was being held at the Bergen County Jail on $2,500 bail.

If you think anything looked hinkey on one of your credit statements or gas suddenly seemed to cost an awful lot one day maybe you should call the Bergen County prosecutor’s office at 201-226-5532 or Glen Rock police at 201-652-3800.

All set, that'll be ah, ninety four dollars

Hey, Mayor Fulop, about this sudden murder surge in Jersey City...

As you know of you spent any time here during the last five years you'd know when a spate of violent crime or a surge in murders would happen we'd jump in Mayor Healy's shit and chide him about all his promises on crime,  like him touting former Chief Comey's computer program to tell where crime is going to happen (yeah that never worked) and ask him if he truly had a plan other than taking guns off the street. So, Mayor Fulop, time to stand up and get something done on this topic. Another one of your citizens was gunned down last night and despite your comments and concerns and plans going forward voiced publicly, not much is changing. Except the body count.

Your effort to educate the city as to why and what is happening was a good start. We didn't used to get anything on that topic from the last guys other than "society is what society is." Your next step, which we hope was undertaken a couple weeks ago, is flooding the crime areas and beating some ass of the usual suspects to find out the who's, what's and where's. Don't make it polite, do what needs doing. Crisis situations call for crisis management. Making life tough on thugs by 'living' in their neighborhood is not 'stop and frisk'. No, it's 'sit on their chest until they are out of air' which is how we think you're gonna need to tackle this problem.

Think more Tywin Lannister, less Oprah...

If they made crime an Olympic event Anthony Felder would be the Michael Phelps of the Crime Olympiad

Anthony Felder got into a little dust up in a Family Dollar store on Wednesday after putting almost 50 candy bars down his trousers then shoving the store manager on his way out the door. Felder was caught and arrested. We're guessing Felder knew the process as this was the SIXTY FOURTH time he's been arrested. He's been arrested so many times they don't even know the date he first showed up on court radar (most likely when the world was in black and white and dinosaurs roamed the earth). Felder has been arrested for a myriad of offenses including, but not limited to, drug possession to theft and tresspassing charges.

Just imagine his medal haul as he absolutely schools the other competitors from other lands in events like B&E with tools; B&E without tools; retail theft; trespassing with foot chase; trespassing with foot chase over 200 meters; and of course he'd be the favorite in the crime pentathlon.

Look, over the years we've pretty much seen the Olympics are a big racket anyway, so let's mix things people love; police chase videos and sport. Just think of the touching and warm human interest story Bob Costas could do for NBC on Anthony Felder.

Costas: "I want to go back in time with you to a seminal moment in your life. Tell me about your 39th arrest..."

TLC would then give him his own show.

It's a quick news roundup this morning

*Jersey City police responding to a noise complaint and came across an all out shootout.

*A Jersey City store owner was robbed and pulled out a machete to chase the perp. Who caught him first, the cops or the store owner? Well, follow the link!

*All Jersey City parking regulations have been resumed.

*A Jersey City assemblyman has some internet likes you might not share. We really don't care WHAT people look at in the privacy of their own homes (as long as it's legal) but this seems to be roiling the people.

*An ember from a cigarette might have caused a huge fire in Fuho. We swear without adult supervision there Hoboken citizens would all die off.

Newark turned into a shooting gallery yesterday

No, more than usual. Mayor Cory Booker (whom we believe is the best choice for the job there, he just lacks police and inherited a culture of crime) has a real mess on his hands this morning. THIRTEEN people were shot in Newark yesterday, one fatally. Sadly we have to report a 15 year old boy was killed. The 15 year old was hanging out with friends in the 100 block of Scheerer Avenue when a car pulled up and opened fire. Seven other people were shot in the driveway ranging in age from 12 to 32 years of age.

Elsewhere in Newark, earlier yesterday 3 men and a woman were shot downtown in broad daylight a couple blocks from the Prudential Center. Yet another woman was shot in the rear end near the corners of Gareis and Blum.

Now we all know the stereotype and jokes about crime in Newark. We'd like to point out while crime is bad there nothing will change until the residents in these neighborhoods MAKE THE CHANGE by cooperating with the Newark police force. They can still arrest people and Essex County can charge them if the citizens there are willing to see it through.

Staten Island either has a race issue or a gang problem

Recent attacks on Hispanic and Mexican immigrants which they claim are racially motivated have Staten Island so not enjoying a long hot summer.

Isaias Lozano who was one of the attack victims claims indeed it was racially motivated:

"They hate us because we're Mexicans," he said while sitting at El Centro del Inmigrante, a center for immigrant day workers. "They aren't robbing just anybody."

Thus far there have been 11 attacks counted on Staten Island so far this summer but not everyone is convinced they are racially motvated by gang related:

Staten Island resident David Johnson said the attacks are more than likely gang related. Johnson blamed the incidents on drug addicts looking to rob people for cash to feed their habits. "They would do that to anybody," he said. "To jump toward bias issues is out of whack."

Racial instability has plagued Staten Island since at least 2003 when 21 day laborers were attacked with one being murdered in 2005.

Whether it's gang related or racially motivated Staten Island has work ahead of it. No doubt a comprehensive immigration policy would help allay SOME fears of the day laborers meeting up during the day at some places across Staten Island but it will be exceedingly difficult to really tell if these are drug related gang attacks or actual racist attacks.

Again with the Hoboken: If you own a Volkswagen Passat in Hoboken, lock your car, get a Lojack

Perusing the news early this Friday morning (so you don't have to), Johnny noticed the crimes section of the Jersey Journal and noticed something strange. There were two crimes against autos, both being VW Passats. There was once case where a gentleman turned his Passat over to a valet in Hoboken in an Observer Highway parking lot. He returned the next day to find it no longer was there. That's nice, pretty much why you give your whip over to a valet in the first place, so it can wind up on a milk carton. The other case was that of Wile E. Coyote Supergenius Steven Gonzalez. Our lad Steven was seen standing next to the passenger side of yet another VW Passat at 3:28 in the AM with a screwdriver and an ice scraper. When the Hoboken po-po spotted Gonzalaez, he took off running only to be apprehended and charged with burglary (he'd busted open the door of the poor Passat), criminal mischief, possession of burglary tools and if you can believe it, Gonzalez had a warrant out for him in Newark.

So the lesson here is if you own a Passat in Hoboken, there are evil men in there who wish to do your ride some harm. Take extra precautions, or buy a different car.

Johnny saw this and wanted to share it--The most infamous cars in history

No, not like the Edsel, no we mean cars used by stars who met crazy ends in them or were used in crimes. Did you know Law and Order's Mariska Hargitay was in the back seat of her mother's (Jayne Mansfield) car when she was killed? Yeah, make SURE you check out the YouTube clip of the Mansfield accident.

A preview of the fine work by The Car Connection below, but you can get the full story HERE

Bonnie and Clyde's Ford V-8
"TheCarConnection.com’s most infamous cars start right here with the Model A that sped into history, piloted by Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker. From the time they met in January 1930, Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker were on a date with a bloody destiny. Their cross-country blast in a Ford V-8 took them across five states from Missouri to Texas, robbing banks and gas stations and stores and killing 13 people. Barrow was famous for his love of Fords, and in the day, the V-8 Ford was the fastest car on the road. Barrow may or may not have written a letter to Ford Motor Company, saying that it "has got every other car skinned," in fact. In May of 1934, Texas and Louisiana police ambushed the duo and their gang in Bienville Parish, Louisiana, pumping 100 bullets into the car. The death car lives on display at the Primm Valley Resort in Primm, Nevada."

Sounds like a local towing company was preying on local residents in a crash for cash scam

According to NJ.com, the owner of HighPoint Towing, along with several of his employee lackeys, were stealing trucks, and crashing them or driving them off of cliffs (cliffs in Hudson County?) and then making money recovering and or towing the trucks from trees, culverts, valleys, you name it.

"HighPoint owner Steven Avella, 53, was arrested on charges of arson for hire, conspiracy to commit theft and two counts of insurance fraud, police said. Police said he paid his workers up to $600 to take the trucks."

NICE isn't it? Several of HighPoint Towing (oh the irony of that name in this case) drivers have also been charged with crimes such as arson for hire, theft, conspiracy to commit theft and possession of burglary tools.

According to North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco, there could be more, much more to this story, "I don't know how big this will become". Are other companies doing this? Are other HighPoint drivers involved?

We'll let you know but how nice a local company is stealing your property to make cash eh?