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The 30 remaining undefeated boys soccer teams

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See the teams that are still without a loss through the first month of the season.


Edison cop at center of no-show job scandal had pattern of misconduct, prosecutors says

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Paul Pappas, 43, was the first to have his case brought before a grand jury in the no-show job scandal

The Edison cop at the center of the no-show scandal that has hung over the township police department since the spring is now facing an indictment accusing him of a pattern of misconduct as an officer. 

Paul Pappas, a 15-year veteran of the embattled force whose tire-slashing arrest served as a catalyst for a multi-pronged criminal investigation into Edison police, was indicted by a grand jury Friday on five counts of official misconduct, including a pattern of misconduct over a two-year span, according to a copy of the indictment obtained through a records request.

Pappas, 44, who had his case brought before a grand jury on Sept. 21, was the first charged in the no-show job scandal to have his case heard by the panel. Prosecutors say officers made tens of thousands of dollars in off-duty details that they never worked.

Pappas was also indicted over a tire-slashing incident in March, and over accusations that he used police computers to stalk his ex-girlfriend.

Four other officers --Sergeant Ioannis "John" Mpletsakis, 38, Officer James Panagoulakos, 32, both of Edison Township, Officer Gregory Makras, 33, of Cranford, and Sergeant Brian Rossmeyer, 41, of Bedminster -- have also been charged with theft and official misconduct in the probe. 

NJ Advance Media previously reported, citing sources, that the criminal investigation by the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office may involve as many as 20 members of the force.

The five officers facing criminal accusations were charged in June as the news outlet looked into the off-duty jobs, in which officers are paid for details during road work or utility maintenance with hourly rates ranging from $40 to $90. 

The shifts are voluntary, separate from overtime and paid by a third-party, but the jobs are assigned in-house and paid out through the township's payroll system.

Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey said when announcing the charges, "the assignment of extra-duty jobs being handled by multiple individuals with very little oversight, paired with an inadequate system of accounting, has directly resulted in nepotism and corruption."

Days after the charges came down, Carey said he expected more officers to be arrested soon, but since then, there have been no additional arrests.

NJ Advance Media previously reported county investigators have taken over the department's internal affairs and are working long hours to comb through years of payroll records. What's proved difficult for investigators, according to sources, is matching the sloppy records with dozens of deals made with third-parties for the details at hand. 

The news outlet requested the contracts from the off-duty work but was told by the town clerk that no records exist.

Pappas sat down with investigators for a voluntary interview last month, but Assistant Prosecutor Christine D'Elia stopped short of saying the officer was cooperating with the probe.

That interview is expected to lead to additional charges against one of the officers already facing criminal charges in the scandal. 

In addition, the police department, which is well-known for its public scandals, is also facing allegations of steroid use and illegally running license plates.

Pappas has been suspended without pay since his arrest in March.

Craig McCarthy may be reached at 732-372-2078 or at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Ex-Rutgers student gets 7 years in prison for drunk-driving crash that killed her friend

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She also had her driving privileges revoked for the first 15 years she's free from prison

An Edison woman will have to serve about six years in prison for drunkenly slamming her car into a bridge abutment earlier this year, killing her friend.

Ashley Gergits was sentenced to seven years in prison Friday for the February 2018 death of Jenna Adamousky, 21, also of Edison, as well as the injuries suffered by two passengers, the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office announced.

She must serve 85 percent of the sentence before she's eligible for parole, or just under six years. Judge Michael A. Toto stripped her driving privileges for 15 years, which starts when she's released from prison.

Gergits was a 20-year-old Rutgers University student when her Honda SUV crashed near the intersection of the Albany Street Bridge and River Road in Highland Park just before midnight on Feb. 16, 2018    

The vehicle then bounced into a Subaru driven by a 31-year-old man from Central Valley, New York.

Adamousky was in the front passenger seat, and she died at the scene. She worked at Ulta Beauty and studied cosmetology at Parisian Beauty Academy in Hackensack, according to her Facebook page. 

The two other passengers, 20- and 21-year-old men from Highland Park, were hospitalized but recovered a short time later.

Gergits had pleaded guilty in April to one count of vehicular homicide, two counts of assault by auto, and driving while intoxicated.

Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @kevintshea. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

HS football: Ramapo wins classic, Union tops 2nd Top 20 team & more Week 4 hot takes

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What went on in New Jersey high school football Friday? We've got you covered.

Scary ghouls, creepy clowns descend on Six Flags for 2018 Fright Fest

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It's the time of year when we start to think about ghouls and haunted places. If your looking to ramp up the scare factor Six Flags Fright Fest is the place to go. The park features more than 25 Halloween-themed shows and attractions, including the terrifying Hell Fest maze based on the new horror movie, Hell Fest, currently in theaters.

19-year-old Rutgers student hit and killed by car

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Prosecutors say the accident happened shortly before 9:30 p.m.

Authorities say they are investigating after a Rutgers student was killed after being hit by a car Friday night. 

The student has been identified as 19-year-old Cory Aufiero, of Colts Neck, Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew Carey said in a release.  

Prosecutors said the accident happened around 9:30 p.m. on Friday in New Brunswick when Rutgers student lost his footing and stumbled into traffic near Albany and Somerset Streets.

Aufiero was pronounced dead on the scene, the release said. 

The driver of the Nissan Sentra, David Stewart, 36, of Somerset, was issued a summons by New Brunswick Police for driving with a suspended license. 

It was unclear if any additional charges were expected. 

An autopsy is pending. 

The investigation is active and continuing. Anyone with information is asked to call Officer Cahill (732) 745-5200 or Detective Abromaitis of the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office at (732) 745-4336.

Taylor Tiamoyo Harris may be reached at tharris@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ladytiamoyo.

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8 N.J. colleges rank among the nation's best -- including No. 1

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Find where N.J. colleges finished in the latest list of top national universities.

N.J. pets in need: Oct. 1, 2018

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Dogs and cats throughout New Jersey await adoption.

Canines and their owners are invited to Roosevelt Park in Edison on Oct. 7 from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. for the fourth annual DogFest New Jersey benefiting Canine Companions for Independence.

dogfest.jpgDogFest New Jersey takes place on Oct. 7 at Roosevelt Park in Edison. 

DogsFest will include speakers, dog demonstrations, music, food and more. The annual event raises funds for Canine Companions for Independence, a nonprofit provider of trained assistance dogs with six regional training centers across the country.

Established in 1975, Canine Companions provides "highly trained assistance dogs to children and adults with disabilities and is recognized worldwide for the excellence of its dogs, and quality and longevity of the matches it makes between dogs and people." There is no charge for the dog, its training and on-going follow-up services. For more information, visit cci.org or call 1-800-572-2275.

Individuals who raise at least $250 will receive a special DogFest gift. Information on DogFest New Jersey and fundraising for Canine Companions is available by going to support.cci.org/site/TR?fr_id=1610&pg=entry.

Roosevelt Park is located on Roosevelt Drive.

Greg Hatala may be reached at greghatalagalleries@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregHatala. Find Greg Hatala on Facebook.


NJ.com football Top 20, Week 5: A new No. 1 and the curse of No. 5 continues

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A third team takes over the top spot in rankings, while No. 5 falls again

Boys soccer: 20 burning questions entering October

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These are the 20 biggest questions surrounding boys soccer in New Jersey.

35 girls soccer teams exceeding expectations so far in 2018

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Which teams have taken a step forward and turned heads in 2018.

Girls Soccer: Can't-miss games for the week of Oct. 1

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The best matchups of the fifth week of the season

Another ode to N.J. fat sandwiches? We'll take it with extra fries.

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It doesn't matter when you have your first fat sandwich, as long as you finally get one.

While Taylor ham/pork roll with egg and cheese may be New Jersey's defining sandwich, the fat sandwich isn't far behind -- and may even be making up ground.

The artery-clogging concoctions, which originated at the Rutgers grease trucks in the 1970s, are packed with every delicious deep fried delicacy you can think of -- chicken fingers, mozzarella sticks, french fries, onion rings, etc. -- and have become popular across the state.

CNTraveler.com may be a little late to the party with this love letter to the fat sandwich, the sentiment is undeniable -- fat sandwiches make you feel fat in all the best ways.

Bridget Hallinan wrote Monday about being a 14-year-old eating fat sandwiches with friends, getting them from a local Ramsey deli for a crazy caloric late-night snack.

We probably weren't their intended audience, but we soon made it a regular habit to center our sleepovers around fat sandwiches. We'd agonize over what to order (to milkshake, or not to milkshake?), before eventually, inevitably settling on our usuals. Mine was The Fat Doug, which came with mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers, onion rings, french fries, and honey mustard on an eight-inch roll. I can still summon that first bite to memory--the melted cheese, crisp and salty breading from the chicken fingers, and the sweet tang of the mustard, all at once. And 10 years later, even though we've swapped wine for soda at our sleepovers, and we don't always make it to 3 a.m., my love for the fat sandwich remains.

Yep, that sounds about right -- an authentic fat sandwich experience. It reminds me of the first time I went to the grease trucks, as a high school kid at Rutgers for a model congress convention. Our teachers went to Rutgers themselves and had waxed poetic about the sandwiches for days, and my "Fat Darrell" with chicken fingers, french fries, mozzarella sticks and marinara sauce more than lived up to the hype as I devoured the cheesy, salty, starchy monstrosity as fast as I could and was almost brazen enough to order another.

Yes, the true blue New Jersey way to first encounter the deep fried goodness of a fat sandwich is at Rutgers like I did (the grease trucks are gone, but RU Hungry? has a brick and mortar store on the corner of Hamilton Street and College Avenue) but we're not here to judge. You've got to get your fat fix however you can, be it Nelly's in West Long Branch, Padonno's in Union or elsewhere. 

The story notes that fat sandwiches haven't just spread across New Jersey but nationwide, with restaurants in Bellingham, Washington and Austin, Texas serving them among others proving once again that the Garden State is ahead of the curve when it comes to food.

Now, if only someone could put Taylor ham on a fat sandwich.

Jeremy Schneider may be reached at jschneider@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Schneider. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

NJ.com's girls soccer Top 20, Oct. 2: New teams enter mix after wild week

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A couple of upsets this week have changed the statewide landscape.

At least 12 pedestrians died after being struck on N.J. roads last month

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Through the first nine months of the year, 115 pedestrians have died in crashes, nearly matching the total fatalities for all of 2017


18 football Players of the Week for Week 4, a September sendoff

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Three players from each of N.J.'s six conferences.

Boys soccer Players of the week for each of N.J.'s 15 conferences, Sept. 24-30

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The best players and keepers in N.J. boys soccer this week.

Stranded driver struck, killed as he walked along I-295 in N.J.

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Johnnie Holloway Jr., 45, of New Brunswick, was struck shortly after 8 p.m. near milepost 74.4 in Ewing

A New Brunswick man was hit and killed by a car Monday after authorities say he got out of his broken down vehicle and began walking along I-295 South.

Johnnie Holloway Jr., 45, was struck shortly after 8 p.m. near milepost 74.4 in Ewing, according to Trooper Alejandro Goez.

"His car had broken down on a shoulder of the road," Goez said.

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Holloway was hit by a car driven by a 51-year-old man from Vero Beach, Florida, the trooper said. No charges were filed.

The crash is under investigation, Goez said.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

Boy chased by stranger after getting off school bus, cops say

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The man eventually stopped running after the boy, according to police

A boy was chased by a stranger who attempted to strike up a conversation after the youth got off his school bus Monday afternoon in East Brunswick, police said. 

The man approached the boy on Willow Street between Arthur Street and New Street around 2:30 p.m., East Brunswick police said in a statement on Tuesday. The student ran off after the man asked his name.

The man gave chase, but halted his pursuit  on New Street and was last seen walking north on Old Bridge Turnpike in nearby South River, according to police.

Stranded driver struck, killed as he walked along I-295 in N.J.

Described as about 30 years old, the man was wearing a long-sleeved white shirt and blue jeans.

A police spokesman declined to provide the boy's age or say if he attends a public school in East Brunswick. East Brunswick High School and Churchill Junior High School students are dismissed at 2:12 p.m. but other schools in East Brunswick are still in session when the incident took place. 

Police are investigating and have stepped up patrols in the area. Anyone with information is asked to call 732-390-6990 or email the department. 

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

 

 

The top girls volleyball freshmen in N.J. - our picks, your votes

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A look at the top girls volleyball freshmen so far in the 2018 season.

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