Dispute between friends ends in carjacking
According to Commander of the Detective Bureau Lt. Frank Cannella, a dispute among friends ended in a carjacking after one allegedly turned a knife on the other and drove away with his vehicle.
Cannella said that on Jan. 11 at 12:30 p.m. Nelson Estevez, 62, a Cliffside Park resident, along with the driver of the vehicle, 46, also a Cliffside Park resident, were carpooling to work when they pulled into the parking lot of Target, located at 7101 Tonnelle Ave., to finish a heated argument over money that Estevez said the driver owed him.
Estevez pulled out a small folding pocket knife demanding money from the victim. When the victim refused to give him the funds, he allegedly threatened to stab him. The victim sustained a small cut to his right hands before jumping out of the 2007 Dodge Ram.
Estevez then allegedly drove off with the vehicle. The victim went to North Bergen Police Headquarters to report the incident, said Cannella.
Police contacted someone whom they believed was Estevez’s wife and asked for her husband to come to the police station as soon as possible. He arrived at headquarters 20 minutes later and was placed under arrest without incident.
11 students named Bloustein Scholars
Eleven High Tech High School students were named Edward Bloustein Distinguished Scholars this year.
According to Dr. Joseph Giammarella, Director of High Tech High School and Academy of Architectural & Contemporary Themes (AACT), they are: Bayonne residents Anna Blazejowskyj and Hannah Dellabella; Jersey City residents Riana Balahadia, Trisha Briones, Sameer Chauhan, Daniel Haddad, and Jean Urbano; Kearny residents Michael Haefner and Amanda Nee; and North Bergen Crystal Shah and Harsh Shah were selected.
The Edward J. Bloustein Distinguished Scholar award is a scholarship under the Garden State Scholarship Program. Students are chosen on their class rank of one, two, or three in their graduating class and their rank within the top 10 percent of their class at the end of junior year, or their class rank within the top 10 percent of their graduating class at the end of their junior year combined with reading and mat SAT scores of 1260 or higher at the end of their junior year.
Bloustein scholars earn an annual $1,000 without regard to financial need, to be put toward continuing their academics at New Jersey institutions of higher education. Each year, more than 7,000 students statewide are chosen to receive the scholarship.
Alleged drunk driver and friend arrested
On Jan. 14 at approximately 2:40 a.m., North Bergen Police Officer Brandon Vilchez witnessed a black Mazda swerving over the yellow double line of Bergenline Avenue and 78th Streets.
According to Detective Bureau Commander Lt. Frank Cannella, the officer conducted a motor vehicle stop and asked for the driver, Filadelfo Romero-Quijada, 35, of West New York, for credentials.
After retrieving his credentials, the officer said he observed a strong odor of alcohol on Romero-Quijada’s breath and asked him to step out of the vehicle for a field sobriety test.
While conducting the test, a passenger in the car, Nelson Hernandez, 42, of West New York, allegedly began acting in a disorderly fashion and began to yell from the passenger window during the test.
“Officers observed Hernandez [allegedly] sticking his arms outside the passenger window, sticking an unidentified black object [at an officer],” said Cannella.
Police told Hernandez to place his hands outside of the vehicle, and when they approached him, they realized that the object was just a cell phone.
They placed Hernandez under arrest and charged him with obstruction of justice. He was released on a summons.
Romero-Quijada was issued a summons for allegedly driving while intoxicated, failure to submit a Breathalyzer, and carless driving.