Shooter still ‘at large’ after 21 year-old man shot
Hoboken Police Chief Kenneth Ferrante told The Hoboken Reporter Thursday afternoon that one shooter is still “at large” after a 21-year-old man was shot on Tuesday night, Feb 2.
The victim of the shooting, whose not was not disclosed, was once in each leg following an altercation at a basketball court, according to the Hoboken Police Department. The incident took place on Hoboken Housing Authority property near Marshall Drive around 8 p.m., according to authorities.
Ferrante did not disclose the victim’s name, address, or details of the dispute since investigators are still looking into the incident. But he did say the victim of the shooting was “not an innocent bystander.”
Despite his injuries, police officials say the victim ran to a nearby light rail station after being shot. He was taken from there to the Jersey City Medical Center and released two hours later.
Obituary points to identity of 51-year-old man found dead
Multiple calls and emails to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office have not yielded any new information after a 51-year-old man was found dead of a gunshot wound in his Grand Street home in Hoboken during the wee hours of Monday, Feb. 1.
An online search shows that the home at 706 Grand St. was owned by Leonid Markevitch. An obituary was posted on Legacy.com on Thursday morning for Markevitch.
According to a press release from the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, on Monday, Feb. 1, officers from the Hoboken Police Department were dispatched to 706 Grand St. around 1 a.m. “on a report of a person in cardiac arrest.”
“Upon arrival, officers found the 51-year-old male in cardiac arrest with an apparent single gunshot wound to his upper torso,” the press release says. “The male was pronounced dead shortly after 1:20 a.m.”
The Hoboken Police Department diverted questions to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office since the investigation is still pending. The prosecutor’s office said they have not ruled out that the gunshot may have been self-inflicted. A taped sign on the doorway of the Grand Street home was posted by the Homicide Unit, warning off trespassers.
Hoboken Police Chief Kenneth Ferrante said that some media outlets falsely reported details about the Grand Street incident, which may have unnerved some locals. WPIX11 initially reported that three individuals barged into the 706 Washington St. home, which is “100 percent false,” Ferrante said.
Ferrante would not release other details. But sources said Markevitch lived there with his wife. Investigators are trying to determine how he died.
State of City slated for Feb. 10
Mayor Dawn Zimmer will deliver her sixth State of the City Address on Wednesday, Feb. 10 at 7 p.m.
Last year she focused on her ongoing program to tackle flood protection in Hoboken, along with infrastructure and the quality of life..
The free event will be held at the DeBaun Auditorium in Edwin A. Stevens Hall on campus of Stevens Institute of Technology. Seating is open to the public and tickets are not required. The main entrance to the auditorium is on Fifth Street across from Stevens Park. For more information visit www.ugstudentlife.stevens.edu/org/debauncenter/DeBaun_Auditorium_Directions.
Councilman calls for more waterfront surveillance near Hudson River
The discovery of a body on the Hoboken waterfront near Pier A last week has raised questions about the purpose of security cameras installed near the Hudson River.
City officials confirmed Wednesday to The Hoboken Reporter that those cameras are, at present, primarily intended for counterterrorism operations per the funding that was secured by the city to obtain them. The cameras were acquired by a FEMA Port Security grant intended for homeland security for counterterrorism along the waterfront, City Spokesman Juan Melli said.
But over the years, some have said the city needs better waterfront surveillance to aid investigations into tragedies like the mysterious death of a young man, Andrew Jarzyk, who disappeared two years ago after he spent a Saturday night at a bar with friends and then jogged on the waterfront.
Last week 24-year-old Matthew Genovese was pulled from the Hudson River. The Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office has not publicly released information about the cause of death. But Hoboken Police Chief Kenneth Ferrante said the cameras did not spot him, which may have aided the investigation.
The body of the Bronx native was recovered from the Hudson River around 1 p.m. last Tuesday by the New York Harbor patrol after he seen the previous Saturday, during the blizzard, leaving friends at McSwiggan’s bar to head home. Genovese’s keys and wallet (with credit cards and cash) were found by police in a snow pile 150 feet from the waterfront the Monday after the blizzard. Genovese had told friends in the bar that he was going to walk home — a few blocks to the northwest — but for some reason ended up four blocks east at the riverfront pier.
Investigators have not answered multiple questions about whether he had suffered from depression or was distraught that night.
First Ward Councilman Michael DeFusco – whose ward contains the pier where Genovese was found – said he would raise concerns over the matter at the City Council meeting today, Feb. 3, at 7 p.m. City Hall.
“This arrangement of cameras is intended to concentrate on port security, not necessarily street-level activity along the walkway or piers, and in my opinion, is not adequate,” he said in a statement to the Reporter. “I will be calling upon my council colleagues and the administration to act swiftly in approving a modern, state of the art system to more effectively monitor the downtown waterfront.”
Melli clarified Wednesday that the cameras also survey the walkways and that although the grant’s purpose is for counterterrorism, “we can use them for solving crimes [and the city] derives other benefits from them as well.”
Zimmer reiterated on Wednesday to the Reporter what she and Ferrante said in a statement late last week: that is vital for the public to understand that the security cameras are meant to help investigators with an incident after the fact, but are unlikely to directly save lives.
Zimmer added that the city is working to acquire additional cameras and evaluate the best steps to move forward.
Fifth annual Green Fair
Live music and organic food vendors are just the tip of the iceberg for the Hoboken’s Green Team’s upcoming 5th annual Green Fair.
“[The fair] is intended to introduce sustainable lifestyle choices to the community, raise awareness regarding environmental issues, and demonstrate how consumers can reduce their impact on the earth by selecting sustainable, eco-friendly products and services,” organizers said in an announcement.
Green businesses, non-profits, as well as the local arts community, are invited to register to participate in the fair. Interested vendors are required to fill out a registration form at www.hobokennj.org/greenfair.
The final day for registration is May 12 and the rain date for the event is May 21.
Liberty Humane Society hosts adoption promotion
Liberty Humane Society is hosting its first adoption promotion of 2016 from Feb. 1 to 14, waiving adoption fees on animals four months and older for qualified adopters.
All animals adopted from Liberty Humane Society are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped before they are sent home.
Adoption fees at Liberty Humane Society range from $120 (for adult cats) to $225 (for dogs). These fees help support the independent and non-profit Liberty Humane Society provide sheltering, high-quality food, medical care, vaccinations, spay/neuter, microchipping, enrichment, and behavioral rehabilitation for those adoptable animals who may need it. Trained professionals evaluate all animals adopted out and adoption counselors are on hand to ensure that every pet finds the best home.
Adopters are invited back to Liberty Humane on Wednesdays for Public Low-Cost Pet Wellness Clinics to keep up with vaccinations, heartworm medications, and other primary veterinary care.
Liberty Humane Society is located 235 Jersey City Blvd in Jersey City, and it is open Tuesdays to Fridays, 2 to 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
$130 million apartment sold to AvalonBay
A five-story 217-unit apartment complex in Hoboken was sold to AvalonBay Communities for nearly $130 million, according to published reports.
The complex is located at 800 Madison, one block from the Ninth Street light rail station. The apartment building, which was completed in 2008, was sold for exactly $129.7 million, announced brokerage firm Holliday Fenoglio Fowler (HFF) who represented the DFS Group in the sale. The property has one, two and three bedroom units approximately 998 square feet each, with amenities such as a pool, barbecue dining area, bocce court and fire pit.