COPS: HOME HEALTH AID DEFRAUDED PATIENT

Recent activity reports, unedited, as provided by the Middletown Township Police Department.

• On August 23, 2011 Detective Laurence Schachtel arrested Jennifer Franklin, age 21, from Hudson Avenue in Middletown, NJ, for Forgery, Theft by Deception and Theft as a result of an investigation into a theft from a resident on Harvey Avenue where she worked as a home health aide.

Police say Franklin used the victim’s ATM card to steal close to $5,000.00 from his bank account. The victim confronted Franklin at which point she agreed to pay him back. However, police say Franklin used counterfeit bills to make the payments.

Franklin was processed and released pending a court date.

• On August 23, 2011 at approximately 2:05 am Patrolman John Soltysik was on patrol in the area of Highway 36 and East Road when he observed a vehicle driving through a construction zone set up by road crews paving the highway. Officer Soltysik observed the vehicle swerve numerous times and knock over traffic cones. The officer stopped the vehicle and approached the driver who provided the officer with a fake name.  

Officer Soltysik conducted an investigation and was able to identify the driver as Robert Jeffcoat, age 29, from Raritan Avenue in Keansburg, NJ. The officer also located seven outstanding Contempt of court warrants issued by numerous municipal courts for his arrest. Jeffcoat was then taken into custody.

Officer Soltysik continued his investigation and determined that the passenger, identified as Jeron Redway, age 23, from Willow Drive in Ocean, NJ, also had numerous Contempt of Court warrants for his arrest. Redway was also taken into custody.

Officer Soltysik also located Naproxen pills inside the vehicle which neither subject had a lawful prescription for. Both subjects were transported to police headquarters. Jeffcoat was charged with Contempt of Court, Unlawful Possession of a Prescription Legend Drug, Providing false Information to a Police Officer, and numerous motor vehicle violations. Redway was charged with Contempt of Court, Hindering Apprehension and Unlawful Possession of a Prescription Legend Drug. Jeffcoat was being held on $12,200.00 bail and Redway was held on $7,636.00 bail.

• On August 23, 2011 at approximately 2:40 pm Patrolman Brady Carr responded to the area of Priscilla Drive in reference to a report of a suspicious female going door to door soliciting magazine subscriptions. Upon arrival the officer located the female who provided the officer with a fake name. Officer Carr conducted an investigation and was able to identify her as Fina Toia, age 19, from Cabrillo Drive in Fairfield, NJ.

Officer Brady confirmed that Toia did not have a permit to solicit and conducted a warrant check. The checked revealed that there was an outstanding Fugitive warrant out of Delaware issued for Toia’s arrest. She was taken into custody and was transported to police headquarters where she was charged with Hindering Apprehension, Soliciting without a Permit and being a Fugitive from Justice.

She was processed and was being held at the Monmouth County Correctional Facility in Freehold, NJ, where she was awaiting extradition to Delaware.

• On August 23, 2011 at approximately 8:55 pm Patrolman Richard Fulham was on patrol in the area of Thompson Avenue and Highway 36 when he observed a vehicle fail to stop at a stop sign. The officer stopped the vehicle and approached the driver who provided the officer with a fake name.

Officer Fulham conducted an investigation and was able to identify the subject as Stacy Cook, age 44, from Old Manchester Road in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Officer Fulham arrested Cook for Obstructing an Investigation. He was transported to police headquarters where he was processed and was held on $2,500.00 bail set by Judge James Berube.

• On August 23, 2011 at approximately 10:45 pm Patrolman Christopher Dee and Patrolman Raymond Sofield of the Quality of Life Unit were on patrol in the area of West Front Street when they stopped a vehicle for swerving from the lane of travel. The officers approached the vehicle at which point they detected an odor of raw Marijuana coming from inside the car.

The officers conducted an investigation and requested a drug detection canine respond to the scene. Monmouth County Sheriff’s Officer Kurt Kroeper and his canine partner Evan responded and searched the vehicle. The dog indicated on the trunk of the car which was then searched by the officers. The search resulted in the recovery of a bag containing Marijuana, a Marijuana Pipe and a scale used to weigh Marijuana which was located in the spare tire compartment and the arrest of Autumn Innocenti, age 21, from Telegraph Hill Road in Holmdel, NJ.

Innocenti was transported to police headquarters where she was charged with Possession of under 50 Grams of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. She was processed and released pending a court date.

• On August 22, 2011 at approximately 5:45 pm Patrolman Keith Hirschbein was on patrol in the area of McMahon Park when he observed several subjects sitting in the dugout of the hockey rink. Officer Hirschbein approached the subjects and located alcoholic beverages in the dugout.

Officer Hirschbein conducted an investigation which resulted in the arrests of a 20 year old female subject from Keansburg, NJ, and a 19 year old female from Kailua, Hawaii. Both subjects were transported to police headquarters where they were charged with Underage Possession of Alcohol and were released pending a court date.

• On August 22, 2011 at approximately 11:20 am Patrolman James Beirne was on patrol in the area of Highway 36 and Wilson Avenue when he observed a vehicle being operated carelessly. Officer Beirne stopped the vehicle and approached the driver, identified as Manuel Costa, age 32, from Center Avenue in Keansburg, NJ.

Officer Beirne conducted an investigation which resulted in Costa being arrested for Possession of under 50 Grams of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia after he located a Marijuana pipe with Marijuana residue in it inside the car. Costa was transported to police headquarters where he was processed and released pending a court date.

• The Middletown Police Department reports the arrests of the following subjects for various offenses:

Kiersten Reinhart, age 22, from Vine Street in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, arrested on August 22, 2011 by Patrolman John Mele for Violation of a Court Order. She was released pending a court date.

Alexander Potts, age 30, from Main Street in Port Monmouth, NJ, arrested on August 22, 2011 by Patrolman Christopher Dee and Patrolman Raymond Sofield of the Quality of Life Unit for Possession of under 50 Grams of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was processed and released pending a court date.

Kiersten Reinhart, age 22, from Vine Street in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, arrested on August 23, 2011 by Patrolman Joseph Ahlemeyer for Violation of a Court Order and Burglary. She was held on bail.

Thomas Hardie, age 29, from Hosford Avenue in Leonardo, NJ, arrested on August 23, 2011 by Patrolman Keith Hirschbein on a Contempt of Court warrant issued by the Middletown Municipal Court. He was released after posting $1,000.00 bail.

Ciro Taormina, age 49, from Main Street in Port Monmouth, NJ, arrested on August 23, 2011 by Patrolman Keith Hirschbein for Shoplifting from the Walgreens Store. He was processed and released pending a court date.