Police & Fire

SPARTA, NJ – A routine traffic stop ended with a Sussex man in custody.  On December 5 around 12:45 p.m. Officer Steven Guido stopped a black Hyundai Elantra on Route 15 north after seeing the passenger ashing his cigarette out of the car window, police report.

Neither the driver nor the passenger had identification but Guido was able to confirm the driver had a valid New York ...

Lafayette, NJ—  The Lafayette Township Volunteer Fire Department announced two new recruits who have completed their training; Firefighter Logan Drake and Junior Firefighter, Jonathan Syre.

Drake was among the recent graduates from the Sussex County Fire Academy on November 17.  He spent six months in classes training in Fire Fighting techniques, HazMat and ...

SPARTA, NJ – A Sparta woman is facing charges for driving while intoxicated.  Police went to a Sparta residence after getting a report of a drunk woman, police report.

When officers arrived and spoke with the driver, Rebecca Krol, 25, they found she had been “highly intoxicated” when she drove to the home, police said.

Krol was not able to complete any field sobriety ...

NEWTON, NJ – The Newton Town Council renewed and extended Police Chief Michael Richards contract at the November 26 meeting.  The new agreement extends the employment contract to December 31, 2022. 

The current agreement was due to expire on December 31, 2019.

In the resolution addressing the contract Town Manger Thomas S. Russo Jr. “recognizes the importance of ...

NEWTON, NJ—Approximately 600 JCP&L customers were left without power for a few hours earlier this month, when a drunk man from New York took down a utility pole in Newton.  

On Saturday, November 10 around 4:27 a.m., Newton Police responded to a report of a car had hit a utility pole in the area of Woodside Avenue between Nelson Street and Lawnwood Avenue.

Upon ...

HARDYSTON, NJ – A home in Hardyston was completely destroyed on Tuesday night. No one was home when the explosion and subsequent fire occurred at a home on Grumm Road, around 10:50 p.m. According to Hardyston Township Volunteer Fire Department there were no injuries or fatalities.

The explosion could be felt as far away as Sparta and Jefferson, residents reported.  The ...

SPARTA, NJ – An Allamuchy woman with a baby in the car was arrested on drug related charges after police were called about an erratic driver.  On November 15 around 12:30 p.m. Police Officer Thomas Herd found the reported black Acura on Limecrest Road heading to Route 15 police report.

When the officer stopped Melissa Zabriskie, the car that had been following her pulled along side ...

PARSIPPANY, NJ - Multiple units responded to a residence on Powder Mill Road for a burglary in progress.
Detective Sergeant T. Lesiak was the first to arrive on scene and began to gather information
from the victim. As Patrol Officer G. Tosh approached the scene, he was flagged down by a
Verizon Wireless employee who advised him that he saw a suspicious female run down the
street and jump a ...

SPARTA, NJ – Two men are facing drug charges after police were alerted to erratic driving by a Sussex man.  On November 20 around noon Sparta police officers found the white Chevrolet Malibu reported to them in the Quik Chek parking lot at the intersection of Route 15 and Sunset Inn Road, police report.

The driver, Robert Barrale-Decker 24 appeared to the officers to be under the ...

NEWTON, NJ – New York residents are facing drug charges after a traffic stop for a broken headlight.  On November 20 around 10:39 p.m. Pt. Mahir Kaylani stopped Thomas Stile, 30, in a Subaru Legacy on High Street, police said.

The officer found that both Stile and the passenger, Brittany Brock, 27 had marijuana and drug paraphernalia including an assortment of pipes and a metal ...