Both victims were expected to survive their injuries, Lt. Steve Varn said. Police were called out to the shooting on the first block of North Stockton Street at 5:44 p.m.

File photo of a Trenton Police car. Michael Mancuso/The Times of Trenton 

TRENTON — Two city men were shot yesterday when a gunman appeared and began firing at them on a city street, police said.

Both victims were expected to survive their injuries, Lt. Steve Varn said. Police were called out to the shooting on the first block of North Stockton Street at 5:44 p.m.

The victims later told police they had been walking to Perry Street from Hanover Street “when someone came out and began shooting,” Varn said.

One victim, age 21, was shot in the forearm, while the 20-year-old victim was shot in the cheek, Varn said.

The pair received treatment at Capital Health Regional Medical Center. Police have no information on potential suspects, but evidence recovered at the scene indicated a handgun was used, Varn said.

Anyone with information on the case should call police at (609) 989-4170 or the Confidential Tip Line at 989-3663.

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A 19-year-old mother was allegedly being held hostage when city police arrived early yesterday morning, but was able to escape with her 1-year-old son.

TRENTON — An armed city man held his two young children and their mother hostage in a four-hour standoff with law enforcement yesterday morning, police said.

Kevin Robinson, 21, had his 3-year-old daughter with him in the mother’s apartment for the entirety of the standoff on Coolidge Avenue, according to police. The 19-year-old mother was allegedly being held hostage when city police arrived early yesterday morning, but was able to escape with her 1-year-old son a short time later while Robinson was distracted.

Though the woman had taken out a restraining order against him, Robinson arrived at her apartment in the West Ward housing projects sometime late Monday or early yesterday, and the two parents began to argue, Trenton Lt. Steve Varn said.

“It was a dispute that ended up escalating,” Varn said.

Robinson had been released from the Mercer County Corrections Center just two weeks before, a county spokesman said.

Around 5:45 a.m., the mother sent a text message to her father that she was being held by Robinson, against her will, with a gun to her head, police said. Her father called 911.

“Officers arrived at the scene, had no response at the door,” Varn said.

The police secured the apartment building, and residents said they were ordered outside. The New Jersey State Police was contacted and sent a tactical unit to the scene. Once they arrived, the State Police assumed control, Varn said.

Police said the mother was in one room of the apartment with her son while Robinson was in a room inside the apartment with the 3-year-old. This separation allowed the woman to slip outside to safety after police had arrived, Varn said.

Robinson’s uncle Rodman Bird said he was briefly able to speak with Robinson in an effort to try to persuade his young nephew to end the crisis peacefully. Robinson gave himself up around 9:50 a.m.

After Robinson came out, the 3-year-old girl was found inside and unharmed. Varn said the woman and both children were being taken to a local hospital for evaluation. The children were not hurt, but Varn said the mother received minor injuries to her back, head, and arm when she was assaulted by Robinson.

Robinson was incarcerated at the county workhouse between Nov. 16 and Dec. 10, spokesman Michael Boonin said. He had been charged with receiving stolen property, terroristic threats and unlawful possession of a handgun by the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office, along with traffic charges through Trenton police.

Robinson was released on bail Dec. 10, Boonin said.

According to Bird, Robinson is the father of the children and the woman involved in the hostage situation is the mother of both children. Family members defended Robinson, saying the children’s mother has continually caused drama in the relationship and this time “she pushed it too far.”

They denied he ever held the gun on his children. Robinson is not a bad person, his sister Kenyatta Gaither said.

“I know my brother is a good kid,” she said.

Police seized a loaded revolver from inside the apartment after the standoff was over, Varn said.

Bird said he encountered difficulty when he tried to help city police. Trenton officers at first dismissed his attempts to help before finally bringing him in to speak with his nephew by phone.

“That’s all I wanted to do, man,” Bird said.

Robinson has been charged with three counts of kidnapping, terroristic threats, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of child endangerment, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and contempt of court.

The case remains under investigation by city detectives, Varn said.

Contact Alex Zdan at azdan@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5705.

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After the man was shot late the night of Dec. 13 in the hip and stomach during a possible robbery attempt, snow helped his blood coagulate and avoid bleeding out, police said.

Trenton police vehicles parked outside a crime scene in this file photo.Alex Zdan /The Times 

TRENTON — One city man is not likely to complain about the snow that fell in the area earlier this month.

According to police, the 24-year-old may have the snow to thank for his life.

After the man was shot late the night of Dec. 13 in the hip and stomach during a possible robbery attempt, his hip wound was bleeding heavily and potentially life-threatening, police said.

Alone when he was shot on East State Street and Monmouth Street, the man escaped and made it to the bridge on East State near Wall Street. There, he fell to the ground, pushing his hip wound into packed snow.

“It coagulated the blood until it was almost frozen,” Lt. Mark Kieffer, a police spokesman, said last week.

That reaction slowed the blood loss enough that he did not bleed out, and the coagulation helped partially seal the wound, police said.

The shooting victim still needed emergency surgery, though help was not immediately on the way. A security guard working nearby found the him some time later and flagged down a passing police car. Police called out an ambulance, which rushed the man to Capital Health Regional Medical Center.

After surgery, the injuries were no longer considered life-threatening, Kieffer said. Hospital records including those of the ICU tonight had no further record of the man, meaning he probably has been released by today.

When police found him in the snow, the man was clutching a cell phone and had another person’s ID on him. Detectives initially thought the victim, dressed all in black and wearing a ski mask, may have been a robber whose victim had turned the tables on him.

But a phone call from a family member indicated the man was carrying his cousin’s ID and was wearing the mask to protect himself from frigid temperatures. Police are still seeking the shooter, but the victim has not been much help, Kieffer said.

“He’s being cooperative, he just doesn’t know,” Kieffer said.

Police are investigating. Anyone with information on the case can call (609) 989-4170, or the Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

Contact Alex Zdan at azdan@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5705.

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Public Works Director Luis Mollinedo called Davis' allegations 'offensive.'

During an interview from behind bars last week, Stanley “Muscles” Davis claimed Water Works technicians received kickbacks from contractors called in to make emergency repairs.

Davis, the brother of Mayor Tony Mack, is serving six years in prison for corruption, admitting in court last year he took on at least three private plumbing jobs on city time and with Water Works equipment. At one home, he took cash from an undercover county detective in exchange for the work, he said.

Public Works Director Luis Mollinedo said the Water Works is increasingly reliant on outside contractors because it is understaffed. He called Davis’ allegations “offensive.”

The Water Works spends hundreds of thousands of dollars each year on the contractors, and Davis said the technicians have the opportunity to benefit from awarding the profitable emergency work.

“They have the discretion of what contractor to call,” Davis said.

Water Works employees said the choice of contractors for emergency work is limited to an approved list, and most of the companies on it have been working for the utility for more than a decade.

Davis, who worked as a foreman for 12 years before his arrest in December 2010, said he would occasionally have to call in for help with larger jobs. His supervisor would secure the manpower through a water technician, who would place a call to a contractor.

“He would have a list of three or four contractors: Dolci — Ted Dolci — Henkels & McCoy, Waters and Bugbee and Jingoli,” Davis said. “Depending on what the size, the scope of the project was.”

“If I have a $300,000 job what you think that does for him?” Davis asked.

Tim London, one of the water technicians Davis named as taking money, said the allegations are false, and that Jingoli, Waters and Bugbee and Dolci have been doing contract work for Trenton Water for the majority of his 22 years on the job.

Davis, London said, is simply applying his own world view to the jobs of others.

“Because they always assumed the techs had control over the contractors, and we don’t,” he said.

Edmund Johnson, a water technician who frequently butted heads with Davis, said what Davis described is impossible.

“For him to even say that is asinine,” Johnson said.

The water technicians do not handle money, and the list of approved contractors is created by the general superintendent of water, he said.

“So there is no way to say you’re going to get money from them,” Johnson said. “It’s impossible.”

A Times analysis of city contract logs for the last three years reveals large sums of work, some on an emergency basis where public bidding is not used, given to Waters and Bugbee and Ted Dolci Inc. However, Jingoli received just two city contracts during that time, and Henkels & McCoy none at all.

Dolci Inc. donated $1,000 to the election fund of Davis’ brother the mayor on June 1, 2010. Since the beginning of 2011, the company has received at minimum $291,000 in city contracts, at least one of those awarded on an emergency basis. Ted Dolci Sr. could not be reached by phone at his office yesterday.

Between the beginning of 2011 and August 2013, contract logs showed a total of $618,900 in work awarded to Waters and Bugbee. Not part of that amount is a $4.4 million contract awarded to Waters and Bugbee in July 2011 was for the city’s Gateway construction project and not connected to the Water Works. In January of that year, however, Waters and Bugbee won a bid worth more than $314,000 to repair roads that were torn up for the water utility.

Jingoli received one contract on an emergency basis in May where the amount was not specified, and a $37,871.99 contract in March 2011. London said both Jingoli and Henkels & McCoy have scaled back work for the water utility in favor of more construction jobs.

A representative from Waters and Bugbee had not returned a call for comment by press time.

“This is the business that the water department is in,” Davis said. “It’s been like that. It just kept getting worse and worse.”

Davis offered no proof to back up his allegations about the water technicians, merely saying it was possible for the engineering office to give the contractors the inside track on work. He said he believes those kickbacks are solely on the level of water technicians and do not go higher in the Water Works or city chain of command.

“I think it went just as far as the water techs,” he said. “That’s as far as it went, because it couldn’t go any further. All the other aspects of this could not go any higher than that because it doesn’t get any higher than that.”

During his time at the Water Works, Davis publicly feuded with Johnson, who at the time was a union vice president, and London. Johnson and London were targeted for termination, demoted and eventually fired for disciplinary reasons. Now with their jobs back, Johnson and London have opened an administrative case against the city, arguing they were targeted for bringing concerns about Davis’ illicit activity to the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office. London could not be reached for comment last night.

In his interview, Davis denied taking large sums of money for performing private water hookups, saying he did those jobs to help homeowners.

“I made enough money just out of overtime,” he said. “My average check was sometimes $8,000 (biweekly).”

He said theft of scrap — which he referred to as “spoils” — was rampant at the yard where the Water Works offices are located on Courtland Street, sometimes in concert with other, unnamed contractors.

He continued his feud with Johnson and London, saying their jobs were targeted after London did not shut a valve on Pennington Avenue in 2010.

“And that created a water problem in Hamilton,” Davis said.

“I told my brother, if he had done what he was supposed to do we wouldn’t have that problem,” Davis said. “He should be fired, he must be incompetent, if he can’t do what you told him to do.”

“At that instance, my brother said, ‘We’ll fix that when we don’t have nobody else not doing what they was told to do,’” Davis said. “He decided to eliminate and privatize the water techs’ job, but unfortunately he couldn’t privatize the whole department, so he had eliminated three jobs: Edmund, Tim London, John Patten, were the least in seniority up there.”

London said he accidentally closed the wrong valve, but immediately remedied the situation.

Patten could not be reached for comment last night. And in response to a claim made by Patten during an Office of Administrative Law hearing for Johnson and London’s case earlier this month, Davis said he never kicked his supervisor out of an office to use for himself.

“I never had any of my personal effects in there, like if I come there, like if I work all night, or all day I would go in the office and leave the door open,” he said. “It was just like an abandoned office, nobody was doing it, so I went in. I didn’t chase him … out. He just wouldn’t go in.”

From his current home at the Mid-State Correctional Facility in Burlington County, Davis is open about the crimes he’s admitted to. But he had a message for anyone at the Water Works participating in corruption.

“You should be locked up,” he said last Friday. “You should be in here with me.”

Contact Alex Zdan at azdan@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5705.

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Two men were shot on the 200 block of Hamilton Avenue at about 5:45 p.m., police say.

TRENTON — One man died after he and another man were shot in front of a liquor store on Hamilton Avenue tonight, officials said.

The deceased victim was shot in the chest and transported in critical condition to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Lt. Steve Varn of the Trenton Police Department said. The victim was pronounced dead at 7:01 p.m., Varn said.

The other man is being treated for a gunshot wound to the leg, but faces non-life threatening injuries, he said.

About 5:45 p.m. police responded to the shooting on the 200 block of Hamilton Avenue, Varn said.

Police were investigating on the sidewalk in front of Bilancio’s Wine & Liquor and inside the liquor store. A vehicle parked in front of the building appeared to have a window shot out.

Police cordoned off the sidewalk on Hamilton Avenue before closing the road between South Clinton Avenue and Hudson Street.

Anyone with information can call the Trenton police Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

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Officers were sent out to the 400 block of Cleveland Avenue around 8:25 p.m. after a citizen's complaint that people were inside a vacant and boarded-up structure, police said.

A Trenton police vehicle guarding a city crime scene in 2013.Times file Photo 

TRENTON — Police who thought they were busting vagrants in an abandoned city home last night instead found drug dealers mixing their product with soap, police said.

The weaker, diluted crack cocaine would allow the dealers to sell more drug, according to police.

Officers were sent out to the 400 block of Cleveland Avenue around 8:25 p.m. after a citizen’s complaint that people were inside a vacant and boarded-up structure, Lt. Steve Varn said.

When the officers arrived, they could see lights on inside the building and approached the front porch of the house from the side to look inside.

One of the men was in the doorway.

“The individual yelled, ‘It’s the cops,’ and slammed the door,” Varn said.

The officers rushed inside, and could see three people trying to grab several objects from inside the vacant home as they fled toward the kitchen door at the back of the house.

Two of the three people were able to avoid police, but the third “tripped over his pants that were falling off his waist,” Varn said.

The suspect, later identified as 22-year-old city resident Eric Parks, was arrested without incident. Parks has an address in Trenton and is not homeless or a vagrant, Varn said. Instead, Parks and his cohorts were using the abandoned house as a low-tech drug lab to alter their cocaine, according to police.

Inside the home, the officers found a quantity of crack cocaine, drug paraphernalia and the soap. Police said the three were manufacturing the imitation drugs there.

Parks was charged with drug possession, possession with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school, possession of imitation narcotics, resisting arrest, improper behavior, obstructing the administration of law, defiant trespass and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Full descriptions of the other two suspects were not available, and police did not specify the amount of cocaine or soap that was seized.

Contact Alex Zdan at azdan@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5705.

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A 21-year-old city man in a stolen minivan led police on a chase through Trenton's North and West Wards that briefly extended into Ewing.

TRENTON — A 21-year-old city man in a stolen minivan led police on a chase through Trenton’s North and West Wards that briefly extended into Ewing on Christmas night before being caught, police said.

Yazear Lee was arrested after he abandoned the van in the rear of Whittier Avenue and fled on foot. Police established a perimeter of the area and soon caught him nearby, police said.

Officers Joe D’Ambrosio and Stewart Owens were on patrol on Brunswick Avenue near Chase Street shortly before 10 p.m. when the saw a silver Honda Odyssey van pass them in the opposite direction. From a look at the plate, one of the officers remembered the vehicle was reported stolen in the city the day before, Lt. Steve Varn said.

D’Ambrosio and Owens caught up to the van on East Paul Avenue, activated their emergency lights and tried to pull Lee over. According to police, Lee briefly stopped, but then sped off when the officers emerged from their vehicle.

Police pursued Lee throughout the western portion and northern section of the city until he came to a stop on Bellmont Circle off of Bellevue Avenue, Varn said.

Officers briefly lost track of Lee when he ran away, but later were able to place him under arrest without incident. A search of his person revealed a clear sandwich bag carrying a substance suspected to be marijuana inside his hoodie, Varn said.

Lee was charged with receiving stolen property, possession marijuana, eluding, obstructing the administration of law, resisting arrest, being an unlicensed driver, reckless driving, failure to stop or yield, and driving the wrong way on a one-way street.

Contact Alex Zdan at azdan@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5705.

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A 48-year-old city man, Kenneth Piggett, who allegedly broke into a downtown store Christmas night was quickly arrested by an arriving police officer, police said.

Times File Photo 

TRENTON — A 48-year-old city man who allegedly broke into a downtown store Christmas night was quickly arrested by an arriving police officer, police said today.

Officer Vincent Gribbin was sent to the store on the 200 block of East State Street shortly after 8 p.m. on a report of a burglary in progress.

“When he arrived, he observed the steel roll-top doors to be up,” Lt. Steve Varn said.

A glass window exposed since the doors were up was damaged and wide open, police said.

The suspect walked out of the building and, seeing Gribbin, ran off on East State Street toward Montgomery Street. Gribbin ran after the suspect, who eventually stopped running, turned toward the officer and gave up.

Police identified the suspect as Kenneth Piggett.

Police said Piggett, who was not able to take anything from the store before Gribbin arrived, was charged with burglary.

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When officers told 23-year-old Breon Johnson to stop walking away from them, he began to run, police said.

A Trenton police SUV is seen at a crime scene in this file photo.Alex Zdan /The Times 

TRENTON — An apparent drug transaction in progress sparked a foot chase in the West Ward yesterday afternoon, police said.

Officers John Sangillo and Travis Maxwell were on the 200 block of Highland Avenue around 12:20 p.m. when they spotted three men on the street. One of the three was displaying an object believed to be illegal narcotics to the others, said Lt. Steve Varn, a police spokesman.

“The suspect had his back turned to the officers,” Varn said. “He had his hand outstretched with the object in the palm of his hand.”

The two men facing the officers began to walk away, and the suspect believed to be carrying the drugs turned around. That man, later identified as 23-year-old city resident Breon Johnson, closed his hand into a fist and began walking away.

When officers told him to stop, he ran instead, with Sangillo pursuing on foot and Maxwell in a vehicle. During the chase, Johnson began throwing garbage cans at Sangillo in an effort to stop the officer’s progress.

Maxwell headed Johnson off in the vehicle, and Johnson tossed the object in his hand onto the ground as Maxwell came upon him. Johnson then stopped running, and was taken into custody.

Police picked up what Johnson had allegedly thrown on the ground: a rectangular package containing 50 packets of heroin. When Johnson was searched, officers found an additional $2,260 in cash on his person, Varn said.

Johnson was charged with manufacturing distributing or dispensing narcotics, possession with intent to distribute within 500 feet of a park, possession of drugs, resisting arrest, obstructing the administration of law, and three outstanding warrants.

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The deceased victim, a 32-year-old man, was shot in the chest and taken in critical condition to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, police said.

TRENTON — One man died after he and another man were shot in front of a liquor store on Hamilton Avenue last night, officials said.

The deceased victim, a 32-year-old man, was shot in the chest and taken in critical condition to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, Lt. Steve Varn of the Trenton Police Department said. The victim was pronounced dead at 7:01 p.m., Varn said.

The other man, 30, is being treated for a gunshot wound to the leg, but his injuries are not life-threatening, Varn said.

About 5:45 p.m. police responded to the shooting on the 200 block of Hamilton Avenue, Varn said.

Police were investigating the sidewalk in front of Bilancio’s Wine & Liquor and inside the liquor store. A vehicle parked in front of the building appeared to have a window shot out.

One witness, who did not want to be named for fear of retaliation, said he saw three men, one in a wheelchair, in front of the liquor store.

He then saw another man come up Hamilton Avenue from the direction of South Clinton Avenue and fire about four shots at the men in front of the liquor store from about 10 to 15 feet away.

No information has been provided about the suspect so far.

Anyone with information may reach the homicide task force at (609) 989-6406, or call the Trenton police Confidential Tip Line at 989-3663.

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Robert Wright, 32, was shot in the abdomen outside of Bilancio’s Wine & Liquor around 5:45 p.m.

TRENTON – Authorities have identified the man killed in a shooting outside a Hamilton Avenue liquor store last night.

Robert Wright, 32, was shot in the abdomen outside of Bilancio’s Wine & Liquor around 5:45 p.m. He was taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 7:01 p.m., officials said.

Wright’s last known address is in Bridgeton, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office spokeswoman Casey DeBlasio said.

A 30-year-old Ewing man was also injured in the shooting, but his name is being withheld, DeBlasio said. He was shot in the leg and is being treated for injuries that are not life-threatening, Trenton police Lt. Steve Varn said last night.

One man who witnessed the shooting, who did not want to be named for fear of retaliation, said he saw three men, one in a wheelchair, in front of the liquor store.

He said he then saw another man come up Hamilton Avenue from the direction of South Clinton Avenue and fire about four shots at the men in front of the liquor store from about 10 to 15 feet away.

No arrests have been made yet by the Mercer County Homicide Task Force, which is investigating.

Anyone with information is asked to call the task force at 609.989.6406 or the Trenton police confidential tip line at 609.989.3663

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Police are asking for the public's help in finding the man who robbed a Roma Bank branch on Columbus Road last week.

Roma Bank in MansfieldGoogle Maps 

MANSFIELD TOWNSHIP — Police are asking for the public’s help in finding the man who robbed a Roma Bank branch on Columbus Road last week.

The man walked into the branch at Homestead Plaza II at 5:45 p.m. Friday with a black semiautomatic handgun and demanded money, Mansfield Township Police said. He fled in a green sedan, possibly a Toyota Corolla, police said.

The suspect is described as a man with olive skin, between 5-foot-4 and 5-foot-7 and dressed in all black. He had a hooded sweatshirt, a ski mask and gloves, police said.
Lt. Eric Campbell said bank robberies are rare in the township.

“Not in our town, this is the first I can remember,” Campbell said yesterday.

The Roma Bank robbery is the second armed robbery in the township in 2013.

“We don’t get them much,” Campbell said.

The state police Uniform Crime Report lists only one armed robbery in the township between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30. It took place Sept. 11, when an attendant at the Valero gas station on Route 206 was assaulted and robbed of an undisclosed amount of money.

Three Mount Olive men — 19-year-old Nakesse Armstrong, Zahir Camillo, 20, and Jordan Walker, 20 — were arrested and charged in connection with the crime, according to the Mansfield police blotter.

Friday’s robbery was at least the second at a Roma branch in December.

A Camden man was arrested and charged with the Dec. 3 robbery of a Roma Bank branch in neighboring Florence, as well as robberies of four other banks in the area, the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office said. He sometimes passed the bank teller a note threatening to use a firearm, but never displayed a weapon, the prosecutor’s office said.

Brandon Dickerson, 22, was arrested by Edgewater Park Police and charged with five counts of second-degree robbery, the prosecutor’s office said.

A spokesman for Roma Bank declined to comment about security at the branch.

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A 62-year-old Trenton woman was shot just above the knee and did not seek medical treatment last Friday, authorities said.

TRENTON — As detectives investigated the slaying of Robert Wright in front of a Hamilton Avenue liquor store on Friday, they discovered new information: an additional victim who was hit in the spray of gunfire that night.

Authorities at first believed a 30-year-old Ewing man shot in the leg was the only person hit other than Wright when multiple shots rang out. Yet on Monday, detectives from the Mercer County Homicide Task Force discovered a third victim, said Casey DeBlasio, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office.

“A 62-year-old Trenton woman was shot just above the knee and did not seek medical treatment,” DeBlasio said today.

It was not clear why the victim did not go to a hospital after being shot, or where she was when officers arrived on the scene and began the investigation.

No arrests have been made and no suspect descriptions were given in Wright’s killing. But more information has come to light about the shooting.

“Police believe there is at least one shooter, possibly a second,” DeBlasio said.

Though detectives have increased the number of potential suspects, they said there’s no indication the victims fired any shots. A witness had said last Friday he saw a gunman come up Hamilton Avenue from South Clinton Avenue and open fire on the storefront from 10 or 15 feet away while several people were standing outside.

The 32-year-old Wright’s last known address was listed as Bridgeton, Camden County, but DeBlasio said he is from Trenton. He was shot in the abdomen outside Bilancio’s Wine & Liquors about 5:45 p.m. and pronounced dead at the hospital at 7:01 p.m.

Wright had served at least three stints in state prison following drug arrests in 2005 and 2008, according to corrections records. He was most recently released from prison on March 25.

The Homicide Task Force is investigating. The task force was launched in November and includes detectives from the prosecutor’s office, Mercer County Sheriff’s Office and the entire Trenton police homicide unit.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call the task force at (609) 989-6406 or the Trenton police Confidential Tip Line at 989-3663.

Contact Alex Zdan at (609) 989- 5705 or azdan@njtimes.com.

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The severity of the woman's injuries was not clear, but police said she was conscious and alert when an ambulance took her to a city hospital.

TRENTON – A city woman has the dubious distinction of being Trenton’s first shooting victim of 2014 when she was shot outside a South Ward restaurant early this morning, police said.

It was not immediately clear whether the gunshot wound she received to the upper rib area was life-threatening, but the woman was conscious and alert when she was being taken to a city hospital, Lt. Mark Kieffer said.

The woman, whose age was not available, was on the 800 block of Lamberton Street around 1 a.m. when a man in dark clothing fired a gun at her, Kieffer said. At least one bullet struck the woman.

Police were called out, and an ambulance took the victim to Capital Health Regional Medical Center for treatment. Detectives are investigating and trying to determine a motive in the case.

No other shootings were reported New Year’s Eve 2013 into the early hours of New Year’s Day in the capital city, Kieffer said. In 2013, Trenton took just 45 minutes to record New Jersey’s first homicide of the year with the shooting death of James Threadgill.

A full description of the suspect in today’s shooting was not available. Anyone with information on the crime should call police at (609) 989-4170, or the Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

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Police in Robbinsville reported a Dec. 20 motor vehicle stop on Route 130 where charges were filed against two Trenton men for possession of a handgun, possession of hollow point bullets and possession of a high-capacity magazine.

HAMILTON

Dec. 23

Burglary to automobile — Johnston Avenue, 400 Block; reported 1:47 p.m. The victim reported that an unlocked automobile was entered at an unknown time. A wallet, Social Security card and a Department of Public Safety badge were reported stolen.

Criminal mischief — Sloan Avenue, 300 block. The victim reported the passenger side window of their automobile was broken at an unknown time.

Shoplifter — Whitehorse-Mercerville Road, Kmart, reported at 1:57 p.m. Officers arrested Edward Roman, 42, of Turnersville.

Theft — Nottingham Way, 2400 block, reported 6:36 am. The victim reported $44 worth of gasoline was stolen.

Theft — Buttonwood Street, 400 block; reported 3:13 p.m. The victim reported six credit cards were stolen at an unknown time. $2,800 in fraudulent charges was subsequently reported.

Dec. 24

Criminal Mischief — Miami Avenue, 200 block; a business; reported 8:58 am. The victim reported damage to security fencing.

Suspicious Person — Marketplace Boulevard, 100 block; NJ Transit bus stop; reported 12:33 am. Officers arrested Lance Knowles, 28, of Far Rockaway, N.Y., on a disorderly persons charge and for resisting arrest.

Robbery — Chambers Street, 1400 block; a business, reported 8:24 p.m. The victim reported two males, one armed with a black handgun, fled the scene after stealing $100 cash.

Theft — Greenwood Avenue, 1700 Block; reported 9:19 a.m. The victim reported two males entered an automobile and removed a purse. The victim reported they chased the suspects and recovered the purse during the pursuit, but the suspects were able to get away.

Theft — Quakerbridge Road, 3100 block; a business; reported 9:37 a.m. The victim reported the drive-through menu board was stolen overnight.

Dec. 25

Criminal mischief, Irvington Avenue, 100 block; reported 12:09 a.m. The victim reported the front passenger side window on an automobile was broken at an unknown time.

Criminal mischief — Redfern Street, 400 block; reported 2:30 p.m. The victim reported an unknown liquid was poured on the hood of an automobile damaging it and a small area of the headlamps.

Criminal mischief — Paxson Avenue, 400 block; reported 5:33 p.m. The victim reported that a mailbox was detached from its post at an unknown time.

Disturbance — Sloan Avenue, 300 block; AMC Theatre; reported 8:36 p.m. Officers arrested Marquette Q. Richardson, 18, of Trenton, on charges of disorderly conduct and failure to disperse.

Motor vehicle stop — Bunting Avenue, 100 block; occurred 12:55 a.m. Officers arrested Jaleel Rivera, 20, of Trenton, on charges of hindering, being in the park after dark and for driving on a suspended license. Officers also arrested Dominique Nottingham, 18, on a probation warrant.

Suspicious person — Whitehorse-Mercerville Road/Eaton Avenue, reported 1:53 a.m. Officers arrested Andrew W. Niebudek, 23, of Hamilton, on disorderly conduct charges.
Dec. 26

Burglary to Automobile — Greenwood Avenue, 1700 block; a business; reported 10:48 a.m. The victim reported their unlocked automobile was entered. A black, bifold, leather wallet containing: $30 cash, three Visa credit cards and a New Jersey driver’s license was reported stolen along with a TomTom GPS unit, valued at $160.

Shoplifter — Route 33, 1200 block; ShopRite; reported 10:24 a.m. Officers arrested Kenneth Holloway, 49, of Trenton.

Theft — Marketplace Boulevard, 300 block; a business; reported 4:37 p.m. The victim reported the theft of a sweatshirt. No further details were provided.

Dec. 27

Burglary — Nottingham Way, 1700 block; a business; reported 1:28 p.m. The victim reported $40,000 worth of games and video equipment was stolen from the business overnight. The point of entry is unknown at this time.

Burglary — Hobson Avenue; reported 7:37 p.m. The victim reported three bottles of prescription medicine were stolen from the residence within the past two days. The point of entry was determined to be a rear door broken window.

Robbery — Chambers Street, 1400 block; a business; reported 7:19 p.m. The victim reported an unknown white male, armed with a handgun, fled down East Howell Street after holding up the business. No further details were provided.

Dec. 28

Burglary — Flock Road; a business; reported 6:31 am. The victim reported $15,785.90 worth of merchandise, including cigarettes and lottery tickets, and cash was stolen from the business overnight. The point of entry is a broken front window.

Burglary — Massachusetts Avenue, 400 block; reported 6:18 p.m. The victim reported a LG 26-inch flat-screen television, a LG Blu-Ray player and an Apple Mac Book Pro 15-inch were stolen. The total value of the proceeds was estimated at $3,400.

Motor vehicle stop — Liberty Street/Chambers Street; occurred 9:17 p.m. Officers arrested Stacey M. Delaversano, 41, of Trenton, on Bordentown warrants, for possession of CDS, paraphernalia and hindering charges.

Motor vehicle stop — Sloan Avenue/Stevenson Avenue; occurred 10:07 p.m. Officers arrested Brent Bishop, 50, of Trenton, on a Ewing warrant.

Dec. 29

Criminal mischief — Innocenzi Drive; reported 9:07 a.m. The victim reported their residence was egged overnight and their automobiles were egged and covered in shaving cream.

Suspicious person — Route 33, 2200 block; CVS Pharmacy; reported 11:20 am. Officers arrested Dana R. Cottrell aka Durand R. Turner, Michael Carr, Richard Durand, Merrill Floyd, Floyd Merrill, Randy A. Turner and Michael Walker, 26, on warrants from: Princeton, Ewing, Hamilton, Trenton and Springfield.

Motor vehicle stop — Greenwood Avenue/Connecticut Avenue; occurred 3:28 p.m. Officers arrested Lyma Lamy, 31, of Bordentown, on warrants from Trenton and Hightstown.

Theft — Basin Road, 300 block; a business; reported 7:45 a.m. The victim reported three Yard Machine snow blowers were stolen from the bed of a pickup truck on the property. The total value of the proceeds was estimated at $3,000. The victim reported the property was unsecured due to ongoing snow removal.

Theft — Route 130, 600 Block; a business; reported 10:05 a.m. The victim reported two kayaks, total value $1,041, were stolen at an unknown time.

Dec. 30

Burglary to automobile — Horizon Drive, 700 block; a business; reported 10:17 a.m. The victim reported their unlocked automobile was entered overnight. A Garmin GPS unit, an 80GB iPod, and a plastic lunch bag containing various keys were reported stolen.

Burglary to automobile — Kuser Road, 600 block; reported 5:05 p.m. The victim reported their unlocked automobile was entered at an unknown time over the past two days. The automobile’s registration and insurance cards were reported stolen.

Suspicious Person — Arena Drive/Whitehorse Avenue; reported 3:57 p.m. Officers arrested Mohammed S. Peruiz, 20, of Hamilton, on hindering charges.

Motor vehicle stop — Chambers Street/Liberty Street; occurred 9:19 p.m. Officers arrested Yasman N. Brown, 25, of Trenton, on a Bordentown warrant.

Motor vehicle stop — Lalor Street/Deutz Avenue; occurred 9:36 p.m. Officers arrested Brian Jimenez, 24, of Trenton, on a Trenton warrant.

Theft — Hughes Drive, 1100 block; reported 12:20 p.m. The victim reported $1,135.97 in fraudulent charges was charged to their debit card in an online transaction.

Theft — Marketplace Boulevard, 700 block; a business; reported 11:40 p.m. The victim reported an Xbox 360 gaming system was returned to the store and the suspect was refunded. However, when the package was opened, an aerosol can and a boot were found inside instead of the Xbox 360.

Dec. 31

DWI — Fetter Avenue; occurred 2:17 a.m. Officers arrested Adam R. Rivera, 24, of Fairless Hills, Pa.

Criminal mischief — Route 33, 1100 block; a business; reported 1:31 p.m. The victim reported a window to the rear of the business was broken at an unknown time.

ROBBINSVILLE

Dec. 16

Roxanne Keelan, 23, of Barnegat, and Bryan Boutillette, 25, of Barnegat were charged with possession of heroin, possession of heroin with intent to distribute following a motor vehicle stop on Route 526.

Dec. 17

Batteries were stolen from three buses at a lot on Route 130. Police are investigating.

Dec. 20

Daniel Cerullo, 26, of East Windsor, and Koleen Vivadelli, 35, of Hightstown were charged with possession of heroin following a motor vehicle stop on Route 130.
Jaishawn Mathis, 20, Trenton, drunken driving, refusal to submit to a breath test, possession of a weapon (handgun), possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, possession of hollow point bullets and possession of a high capacity magazine. Marquis Saunders, 20, Trenton, possession of a weapon (handgun) possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose, possession of hollow point bullets, possession of a high capacity magazine., on Route 130

Dec. 21

Joseph Gemellaro, 43, Middletown, drunken driving, on Route 130.

Duane Woodard, 58, Monroe, drunken driving, on Route 130.

A 2006 Ford Mustang was stolen from a parking lot on Route 33.

Theodore Weitzel, 43, Robbinsville, drunken driving.

A wallet containing $40 in cash and credit cards was stolen from a car parked in a lot on Route 130. The cards were later used to make $600 in purchases. Police are investigating.

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Patrons were told to get down on the floor by the shouting, masked suspects, but none of them were robbed or hurt, Lt. Bruce Painter said.

BURLINGTON TOWNSHIP - A quiet breakfast shift at the International House of Pancakes turned chaotic when armed robbers burst in this morning, police said.

Patrons at the IHOP on the 2700 block of Mount Holly Road were told to get down on the floor by the masked robbers, at least one of whom was armed with a handgun. The robbery happened around 7:15 a.m. when the breakfast crowd was still sparse, and the incident was over quickly, Lt. Bruce Painter said.

"It was a quick in-and-out," Painter said.

No injuries were reported, and police said the suspects did not bother to rob the restaurant patrons. Instead, police said they focused their attention on the register, secured an undisclosed amount of cash, and fled.

Full descriptions of the robbers were not available. No arrests have been made, and the investigation is ongoing.

"My professional guess was someone looking to get quick money," Painter said.

Similar robberies have not been reported in the township or nearby Westampton recently, but Painter said police are looking into any possible connections with a series of bank robberies that have taken place in Burlington County. The most recent targeted a Roma Bank in Mansfield last week and involved a lone, armed suspect.

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No one was hurt in the Dec. 29 gunpoint robbery, police said. today.

HAMILTON – Police are seeking the public’s help in identifying the suspect in a Dec. 29 gas station robbery.

The holdup happened at the Runway gas station on Greenwood Avenue shortly after 4:30 p.m., Capt. James Stevens said. The attendant was inside the booth working when he was approached by a man who drew a black handgun.

The suspect demanded that the attendant give up all the cash he had. The attendant complied and gave up an unknown amount of cash. After taking the money, the suspect fled on foot toward Massachusetts Avenue and out of sight.

Police were called and Officers Steve Chell and Ken McGuire responded to the scene. A search of the area along with other units did not turn up the suspect, Stevens said.

Detective Len Gadsby is investigating. Today, police released image from a surveillance camera at the station that allegedly shows the suspect. He is described as a Hispanic male, early 20s, 5-foot-8, 150 pounds, wearing a red jacket, blue baseball cap, blue jeans and black sneakers.

Anyone with information on the case should call Gadsby at (609) 581-4032 or the police department’s anonymous tip line at (609) 581-4008.

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Data released in a preliminary Uniform Crime Report from the state show that overall crime in Mercer County dropped by 1.1 percent from 2011 to 2012.

Crime in Mercer County and across the state dropped in 2012, a state report released yesterday said, and more recent numbers from local police departments indicate that 2013 saw further reductions in most types of crime.

Data released in a preliminary Uniform Crime Report from the state show that overall crime in Mercer County dropped by 1.1 percent from 2011 to 2012 compared to a 4.6 percent drop statewide.

Even with this drop, however, the number of homicides and rapes statewide in 2012 represented six-year highs, the report said.

The county’s overall crime rate dropped due to a 12.3 percent drop in simple assault and a 2.5 percent drop in all other types of assault, despite a 4 percent rise in homicide and rape rates, and increases in robbery, 10 percent; burglary, 6.1 percent; and motor vehicle theft, 5 percent.

While countywide data for 2013 is not yet available, town-by-town figures for January through November of last year indicates that the county’s final numbers are likely to show an overall reduction in crime from 2012 to 2013.

With only December results untallied, most Mercer municipalities, including the seven largest, have reported decreases in crime.

Notable total crime reductions in the county included Hopewell Township, down 24 percent; Hamilton, 17.7 percent; and Trenton, 8.4 percent. Robbinsville saw a 14.8 percent increase in crime, almost entirely tied to a jump in simple assault.

The clear divergence from this downward trend in crime is the homicide rate, as Mercer experienced 10 more homicides through November and saw three more in December, representing an increase of 50 percent.

The total number of homicides for Mercer in 2012 was 26 and in 2013 it was 39.
The raw 2012 numbers released yesterday came out ahead of the full Uniform Crime Report.

Until last year, when it came out in December, the Uniform Crime Report was usually released from September to November. Yesterday’s statistics — released three days into 2014 — don’t show the complete 2012 report that customarily analyzes trends and data.

Paul Loriquet, a spokesman for the Attorney General’s Office, said the State Police have run into a glitch and have not been able to finish a final report. He said the state released a summary of the report yesterday to “get out the data as soon as possible.”

Wayne Fisher, a professor at the Rutgers School of Criminal Justice, said that makes the numbers difficult to dissect.

“It’s only a two-year slice (2011-2012), with relatively no change that jumps off the page,” Fisher said. “It’s nice to see the decreases. But the state used to come out with this stuff the year after. Now we’re into 2014. It makes it impossible to comment.”

Not surprisingly, the largest number of murders in 2012 took place in the state’s most dangerous cities. Newark had the most with 96, two more than 2011.

But 2013’s numbers appear to be worse. Earlier this week, a Star-Ledger analysis of more recent police and county records showed homicides in New Jersey jumped to a seven-year high of 409 last year.

Other notable data from the 2012 numbers released yesterday:

• Six counties had more than two dozen murders: Mercer (26), Union (28), Atlantic (29), Passaic (29), Camden (71), and Essex (121).

• The county with the largest drop in crime was Union with a 12.8 percent decrease. Cumberland had the largest increase, 8.4 percent.

The Star-Ledger contributed to this report.

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After his sister was violently murdered in 2011, Kell Ramos knew he wanted to do something to make sure no other woman suffered a similar fate.

After his sister was violently murdered in her Bordentown apartment on Nov. 7, 2011, Kell Ramos knew he wanted to do something to make sure no other woman suffered a similar fate.

Had his sister known the truth about the man she was involved with, things might have ended differently, Ramos says.

Misty Ramos told her family that something was off with her ex-boyfriend Noel Irizarry, but she kept seeing him because he wouldn’t leave her alone. She had caught him in several lies and broken promises, of a nice house and a new job. She even ran a background check on him, but he came up clean, family members said.

One daym Ramos stopped answering her cell phone and was late to pick up her 9-year-old daughter at day care. Her family members found her lifeless body on the floor of her apartment. It was then they learned about the biggest lie Irizarry had told. He had never admitted to having served time in prison for an episode of brutal violence in which he had slashed his ex-girlfriend’s throat in a non-fatal attack.

The family discovered the truth about his background and the 10 years he had spent in jail only after his arrest in Ramos’ death.

“If we had known that, she wouldn’t have been with him,” said Vicky Hammer, Ramos’ mother.

Irizarry pleaded guilty in February 2012 to killing Ramos and is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence.

In the six months after Misty’s death, Kell Ramos, her older brother, came up with the idea to start a domestic violence database for repeat, violent offenders, so that victims of violence or those who are uneasy about their partners can search to see if they are on the list.

Ramos said he saw Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Trenton) shortly after his sister’s death and brought up the idea to create a database — much like Megan’s Law database for sex offenders — and Gusciora said he would sponsor the legislation. After several meetings and changes to the controversial bill, and after an initial introduction last year, the bill is ready to be reintroduced in the next legislative session, which begins Jan. 14, Gusciora said.

“As a municipal prosecutor, I see it a lot. There are times where I will have domestic violence offender and see his registry from the police and there is a whole list of prior offenses,” Gusciora said. “I see these instances where they are extremely violent.”

Gusciora said advance knowledge would enable potential victims to make better choices about whom they become involved with.

Ramos said he has some reservations about any further changes to the bill, because he wants to make sure it is not too broad — such as listing anyone who is found guilty of domestic violence, even if it is not a violent offense. Ramos said there should be some way to prevent innocent people accused of domestic violence from being placed on the list.

“A lot of times men and women make these things up when they have been scorned,” Ramos said. “And being on a registry can change your life.”

Ramos said he would prefer that the registry be limited to repeat, violent offenders who pose a serious threat to their victims.

Ramos, a local documentary filmmaker, has decided to document the effort to pass the legislation, but at the same time shine a light on the cycle of violence that permeates many families.

In the film, Ramos discusses his own history of domestic violence and conviction for simple assault, as well as the emotional abuse he and his mother, brother and sister endured growing up.

“Our home was a war zone,” Ramos said, describing life with his mom and stepfather.
“We watched my mother always fighting,” Ramos said.

“He wasn’t physically violent,” Hammer said. “We had a lot of anger issues. There was a lot of slamming doors and yelling. I couldn’t see leaving. I was under his spell, I guess.”

Ramos said he was charged with simple assault against his wife after the two of them got into an argument in 2003 that ended when they were pushing and shoving and eventually threw punches and he cut her lip.

Although his wife dropped the charges, Ramos was charged in state court with simple assault and let off with a fine.

When he got home, Ramos said he asked his wife why she called the cops. She asked him what he would tell their daughter to do if it were her in that situation.

“That was my epiphany,” Ramos said.

He went to therapy and started to think about the ways he was treating his wife badly.

Ramos said he didn’t always realize what he was doing was abusive because his wife didn’t always react. She had been severely abused as a child, he said, and that affected how she responded to abuse.

“What I was doing, it was easy compared to what she grew up in,” Ramos said.

After Misty Ramos’ death, Kell Ramos discovered his sister had fit herself into the same role that his mother had been in growing up.

“It was exactly the same,” he said. “She never had a good relationship in her life. “

Ramos has started a domestic violence group online to help victims and offenders of domestic violence and raise awareness of the issue.

He said he will continue to work toward the creation of a database, even if it faces opposition in the state Legislature. Ramos has begun a campaign going around to different municipalities in New Jersey, asking local leaders to adopt the creation of a database locally, as has been done in Clinton.

“If a few cities have it passed it might have a better chance in the state,” Ramos said. “It will happen eventually.”

For more information about the documentary and the legislation visit www.mistydawndocumentary.com

Contact Jenna Pizzi at jpizzi@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5717.

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The victim’s cause of death is still under investigation, officials say.

TRENTON — Officials are investigating a possible connection between reports of gunshots and a car fire last night that left one person dead, authorities said.

The city’s Fire Department was dispatched at 7:07 p.m. yesterday to a car fire on Hart Avenue and discovered a dead body inside the car, a spokeswoman for the Mercer County prosecutor’s office said today. There were also initial reports of gunshots fired, but they were unfounded, Battalion Chief Ron Kosztyu said last night.

The victim’s cause of death is still under investigation, spokeswoman Casey DeBlasio said today.

“The victim is believed to be a male, but the body was badly burned,” DeBlasio said. “We are still awaiting an autopsy this week to be able to see further.”

“It is suspicious at this time,” Lt. Mark Kieffer, a police spokesman, said today.

Earlier yesterday, city police were called to the 1100 block of Brunswick Avenue at 2:06 p.m. and found 41-year-old Bogdan Wilk sitting dead on the sidewalk, Kieffer said. Wilk died of natural causes, he said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the task force at (609) 989-6406 or the Trenton Police Confidential Tip Line at (609) 989-3663.

Contact Nicole Mulvaney at nmulvaney@njtimes.com.

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