Lyndhurst man’s really bad day
According to North Bergen Detective Bureau Lt. Frank Cannella, Jeffrey Vazquez, 35, of Lyndhurst, was arrested on Nov. 12 at 12:45 a.m. after an argument with his girlfriend led to his arrest, after which allegedly police found in his possession.
Cannella said that during the day Vazquez had a “minor verbal argument” with his then-girlfriend and afterward packed up his belongings and left. Later that day, he went to a local bar to have a drink. When he walked in, he found his ex-girlfriend there.
They got into another minor verbal argument, police said. Afterward, Vazquez allegedly took the woman’s cell phone. She followed him outside, and, seeing a police car, she asked for help.
After the officer pulled Vazquez and the woman apart, they told the officer about their earlier arguments. The phone was returned.
“Both [men allegedly] began to punch the victim in the face and body and tried to unzip his jacket and take his wallet.” – Frank Cannella.
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After his arrest for failure to appear, Vazquez was searched, which is normal protocol due to safety reasons, said Cannella.
Police said they discovered – allegedly in his pocket – a large plastic bag that contained several small red plastic bags with what police believed to be cocaine. There were 10 in total, Cannella said.
Police then learned that Vazquez had an additional three warrants for an arrest from North Bergen.
Police said they also searched his belongings, since they were still on him, and found other small red bags and a scale of the kind Cannella said is used to weigh drugs.
He was charged with an additional failure to appear, manufacturing and distributing a controlled dangerous substance, distributing a controlled dangerous substance 500 feet from a public park, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
His bail was set at $55,000 by Judge Nino Falcone.
Alleged burglars held on 25K bail
Two North Bergen men were arrested Tuesday on robbery charges that stemmed from an incident last weekend, according to Cannella.
Michael Bastidas, 18, and Rene Albert Lopez, 19, both of North Bergen, were charged with robbery and had bail set at $25,000 each.
Cannella said that on Nov. 15 around 9:40 p.m., a 23-year-old North Bergen man exited a bus on Bergenline Avenue and 72nd Street. He was allegedly followed by Bastidas and Lopez to the entry of a building on Palisade Avenue, where the duo allegedly grabbed him by his jacket and swung him around.
“Both [men allegedly] began to punch the victim in the face and body and tried to unzip his jacket and take his wallet,” said Cannella.
Cannella said one of the men grabbed a wooden stool in the vestibule of the building and allegedly tried to strike the victim with it, but the victim was able to grab it and throw it to the floor.
At some point residents of the building heard noise and opened their doors to see what was happening, which was when Bastidas and Lopez allegedly fled the scene, said Cannella.
He said that several witnesses came forward and identified Bastidas and Lopez as the alleged perpetrators. Cannella said that they were both known to the police.
1989 murder case ends in conviction
A man was convicted last week in a court in Nassau County, N.Y., of the 1989 murder of a North Bergen woman.
According to published reports, Joey Bethea was found guilty of strangling Dorothy LeConte, a 22-year-old North Bergen resident who was visiting relatives in Long Island. Her body was found near Hempstead High School decades ago.
Bethea, who lives in upstate New York, faces 25 years to life in prison when he is sentenced. He was arrested in 2009 in connection with a gas station theft, which resulted in a DNA swab linking him to the 1989 murder case, said reports.
Allegedly stole hospitalized woman’s belongings
Shannon Glavin, 27, of Fairview, was charged with theft and released on a summons after police claim she stole another woman’s jewelry and belongings from Palisade Medical Center in North Bergen on Nov. 12.
Cannella said that as Glavin was being discharged from the hospital, she was handed an envelope containing a pair of earrings, two rings, a cell phone, a Coach wallet, $60 in cash, a U.S. Green Card, a Social Security Card, a New Jersey Driver’s License, and a TD Bank Card. These items actually belonged to a 43-year-old woman from Cliffside Park who was also in the hospital, not Glavin, said police.
Cannella said that when Fairview Police stopped the woman while she was driving away from the hospital, she allegedly told them that she’d thrown the wallet out the window. They then called North Bergen Police.
“Apparently security did make a mistake, they did hand this woman somebody else’s property,” said Cannella.
Hospital security told police that Glavin had actually had no personal belongings stored at the hospital during her stay. The other allegedly stolen items were returned to the victim, said Cannella.
Tricia Tirella may be reached at TriciaT@hudsonreporter.com.