Bergen County, N.J., Log: 47 of 49 Felony Cases Went Unreported

Bergen TV Exclusive: HACKENSACK, N.J. — An 8-page internal complaint spreadsheet released by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office (BCPO) under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA) reveals that 49 unique defendants were charged across 139 indictable-case charge rows in 27 Bergen County municipalities and courts between Oct. 12 and Oct. 18, 2026—and 47 of the 49 defendants (95.9%) were never mentioned in any Prosecutor’s Office press release.

The unannounced cases on BCPO’s internal PROMIS/Gavel log include a 13-count Tenafly money laundering and forgery complaint, a 7-count Mahwah computer crime and data-disruption case, a Fort Lee extortion-by-threat and burglary warrant, a 6-count Garfield child-custody interference and assault-on-police warrant, a Hackensack drug distribution probe involving 100 or more doses of prescription legend drugs and heroin/cocaine near public property, a Ramsey unlawful handgun and large-capacity magazine case, and an Edgewater aggravated assault on police and motor-vehicle eluding case.

A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Every defendant listed in public court and prosecutorial records is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

How BCPO Disclosed the 8-Page Internal PROMIS/Gavel Spreadsheet at $0 Fee

On Oct. 19, 2026, Bergen TV filed an OPRA request with the Prosecutor’s Office seeking any existing weekly report, intake log, or case-management export listing indictable criminal complaints (complaint-warrants and complaint-summonses) filed, received, or screened in Bergen County between Oct. 12 and Oct. 18, 2026, along with public arrest information under N.J.S.A. 47:1A-3(b).

In an Oct. 26, 2026 response letter (Ref. 10-19-26) signed by BCPO Assistant Records Custodian Maria Fagliarone under Prosecutor Mark Musella’s letterhead, the office stated that it did not possess the weekly arrest report maintained by the Administrative Office of the Courts, citing Williams v. Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office (GRC Complaint No. 2014-297). However, Fagliarone wrote that BCPO “do(es) possess an internal report bearing certain information related to complaints that I attach hereto,” and produced a 16-page PDF at $0.00 cost:

• Pages 1–8: An 8-page landscape internal BCPO PROMIS/Gavel complaint spreadsheet (sorted reverse-alphabetically from Zotollo, Zachary M. to Almonte, Joshua R.) listing 49 unique defendants across 139 charge rows (20 rows on , 18 on , 19 on , 19 on , 16 on , 15 on , 17 on , and 15 on ). Each row records the defendant’s name, municipality of residence, eCDR Complaint-Warrant (W-2026-...) or Complaint-Summons (S-2026-...) number, filing date, court/municipality, initial charge description and N.J.S.A. statute code, PROMIS GAVEL #, and local PD CASE #.
• Pages 9–16: Four 2-page BCPO press releases. Only two of those releases covered defendants from the Oct. 12–18 spreadsheet—Emad E. Gerges, 66, of Upper Saddle River (W-2026-000394-0290, charged Oct. 16 in an alleged arson-for-hire plot at 18 Lake Road) and Rohweniven Bacani, 52, of Hackensack (W-2026-000391-0290, charged Oct. 14 with third-degree aggravated assault for allegedly poisoning an acquaintance’s tea at a Fort Lee restaurant). The other two attached releases covered Oct. 19–20 arrests in Paramus (the Route 17 fatal hit-and-run) and Teaneck (an armed robbery investigation).

Seven Major Unannounced Indictable Cases on BCPO’s Oct. 12–18 Log

Among the 47 defendants on Pages 1–8 who were never announced in a Prosecutor’s Office press release, the internal PROMIS/Gavel spreadsheet documents the following major complaints across Bergen County municipalities:

1. Tenafly: 13-Count Money Laundering, Forgery & Theft by Deception Warrant

• Defendant: Nicholas G. Didio-Slaaen (Garfield, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrant W-2026-000036-0261, filed Oct. 15, 2026 in Tenafly Borough (PROMIS Gavel #26004687; Tenafly Police PD Case # C2024-154).
• Initial Charges (13 rows on Pages 5–6): One count of Money Laundering — Manage/Direct Transaction (N.J.S.A. 2C:21-25c); three counts of Accomplice Liability for Theft by Deception (N.J.S.A. 2C:2-6a); three counts of Accomplice Liability for Forgery — Uttering Forged Documents (N.J.S.A. 2C:2-6a); two counts of Accomplice Liability for Forgery — False Authentication of a Writing (N.J.S.A. 2C:2-6a); one count of Accomplice Liability for Forgery — Altering or Changing a Writing Without Authority (N.J.S.A. 2C:2-6a); and three counts of Receiving Stolen Property (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-7a).

2. Mahwah: 7-Count Computer Crime, Data Disruption & Credit Card Theft Warrant

• Defendant: Natalie Silva (Mahwah, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrant W-2026-000223-0233, filed Oct. 13, 2026 in Mahwah Township (PROMIS Gavel #26004646; Mahwah Police PD Case # 2026-29788).
• Initial Charges (7 rows on ): Three separate Computer Crime counts—Accessing a Computer System With Purpose to Defraud or Steal (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-25c), Altering, Damaging, Destroying, or Disrupting Data or a Computer System (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-25b), and Taking or Copying Data, Programs, or Software (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-25e)—along with Credit Card Theft (N.J.S.A. 2C:21-6c(1)), Theft by Unlawful Taking of Moveable Property (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-3a), Criminal Attempt (N.J.S.A. 2C:5-1a(1)), and Receiving Stolen Property (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-7a).

3. Fort Lee: Theft by Extortion (Threat of Harm) & Structure Burglary Warrant

• Defendant: Jakub Cielemecki (Saddle Brook, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrant W-2026-000359-0219, filed Oct. 15, 2026 in Fort Lee Borough (PROMIS Gavel #26004685; Fort Lee Police PD Case # 2026-50498).
• Initial Charges (2 rows on ): Theft by Extortion — Threat to Inflict Harm on Another (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-5g) and Burglary — Entering Structure (N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2a(1)).

4. Garfield: Interference With Child Custody, Child Endangerment, Burglary & Assault on Police

• Defendant: Derrick Norwood (Garfield, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrant W-2026-000382-0221, filed Oct. 16, 2026 in Garfield City (PROMIS Gavel #26004690; Garfield Police PD Case # 26-026561).
• Initial Charges (6 rows on Pages 3–4): Interference With Custody — Taking or Concealing a Child (N.J.S.A. 2C:13-4a(1)), Endangering the Welfare of a Child — Abuse/Neglect (N.J.S.A. 2C:24-4a(2)), Residential Burglary (N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2), Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(5)(a)), Resisting Arrest (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2a(1)), and Contempt of a Domestic Violence Restraining Order (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-9b(2)).

5. Hackensack: 100+ Doses of Prescription Legend Drugs & Heroin/Cocaine Near Public Property

• Defendants: Edward L. Lynch and Estrella Alvarado (both of Hackensack, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrants W-2026-000609-0223 (Lynch) and W-2026-000607-0223 (Alvarado), both filed Oct. 15, 2026 in Hackensack City under shared PROMIS Gavel #26004692 and Hackensack Police PD Case # 26-089922.
• Initial Charges (7 rows total on Pages 4 & 8): Lynch is charged with Distributing or Possessing 100 or More Doses of Prescription Legend Drugs (N.J.S.A. 2C:35-10.5a(4)), Manufacturing/Distributing Heroin or Cocaine under 0.5 ounces (N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5b(3)), two counts of Possessing/Distributing CDS Within 500 Feet of Public Property (N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7.1a), and Distributing Drug Paraphernalia (N.J.S.A. 2C:36-3). Alvarado is charged under the same case number with Hindering Apprehension by Hiding or Suppressing Evidence (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-3b(1)) and Drug Paraphernalia Possession (N.J.S.A. 2C:36-2a).

6. Ramsey: Unlawful Handguns Without Permits & Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazines

• Defendants: Seth D. Hoffman (East Orange, N.J.) and David Y. Awad (Bayonne, N.J.)
• Complaint / Case IDs: Warrants W-2026-000111-0248 (Hoffman) and W-2026-000112-0248 (Awad), both filed Oct. 13, 2026 in Ramsey Borough under shared PROMIS Gavel #26004643 and Ramsey Police PD Case # 26-21508.
• Initial Charges (10 rows total on Pages 4, 7 & 8): Both co-defendants are charged with Unlawful Possession of a Weapon — Handguns Without a Permit (N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b(1)), Prohibited Weapons and Devices — Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazine (N.J.S.A. 2C:39-3j), and Possession of a Controlled Dangerous Substance (N.J.S.A. 2C:35-10a(1)); Awad is additionally charged with Drug Paraphernalia Possession (N.J.S.A. 2C:36-2a) and Hindering by Giving False Information to Police (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-3a(7)).

7. Edgewater & Fair Lawn: Aggravated Assault on Police Officers & Eluding

• Edgewater Borough (W-2026-000199-0213 & W-2026-000200-0213, PD Case # 26-019718): Co-defendants Kalyl M. Richardson (filed Oct. 13, PROMIS Gavel #26004675) and James D. Rogers (filed Oct. 15, PROMIS Gavel #26004737), both of Hempstead, N.Y., are each charged with Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(5)(a)), Eluding Police in a Motor Vehicle After Instruction to Stop (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-2b), and Shoplifting (N.J.S.A. 2C:20-11b(1)).
• Fair Lawn Borough (W-2026-000251-0217 & W-2026-000252-0217, filed Oct. 17, PROMIS Gavel #26004723, PD Case # 26-20225): Albana Ayvaz (Fair Lawn, N.J.) is charged with Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(5)(a)), Aggravated Assault on a Domestic Violence Victim (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(13)), and Terroristic Threats (N.J.S.A. 2C:12-3b).
• Bergen County Central Court Witness Tampering (W-2026-000393-0290, filed Oct. 16, PROMIS Gavel #26004716, PD Case # 26000181): Nicholas F. Sanchez-Garcia (South Hackensack, N.J.) is charged with Witness Tampering — Withholding Testimony or Information (N.J.S.A. 2C:28-5a(2)) and Contempt (N.J.S.A. 2C:29-9b(1)).

Municipality-by-Municipality Breakdown of All 49 Defendants (Oct. 12–18, 2026)

Across all eight pages of the Prosecutor’s Office spreadsheet, the 49 unique defendants and 139 charge rows break down across 27 Bergen County courts and municipalities as follows:

Public Safety Budgets and Bergen County Taxpayer Accountability

The Oct. 26 OPRA production marks the second major law-enforcement records disclosure obtained by Bergen TV this week at zero cost to taxpayers, following the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office’s 1,294-page OPRA production on Oct. 26—released after the Sheriff’s Office dropped a $54,000 service-fee demand—which documented $188,016.55 in 2022 county jail food-contract overpayments.

County and municipal policing and court operations represent one of the largest components of local property tax bills across Bergen County’s 70 municipalities. Homeowners who want to see how much of their local tax bill goes to municipal and county government—or check whether their property assessment is fair—can run a free address lookup with the GardenState.ai Property Tax Appeal tool and check local home values at GardenState.ai.

More from Bergen TV: Bergen, N.J., Sheriff Drops $54K Fee; Jail Logs Show $188K Overpaid · Bergen County, N.J., Donors Gave $571K, Won $25.8M in 2026 Contracts · Paramus, N.J., Route 17 Fatal Hit-and-Run Complaint-Warrant Details

Bergen TV asks: Should the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office publish its weekly indictable complaint log online for the public automatically? Share your take in the comments.

Sources

• Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office OPRA Response Letter (Ref. 10-19-26, dated Oct. 26, 2026, Assistant Records Custodian Maria Fagliarone — PDF)
• Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Oct. 12–18, 2026 Internal PROMIS/Gavel Complaint Report (Pages 1–8) and Attached Press Releases (Pages 9–16) — 16-Page OPRA Production PDF
• Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Press Releases Archive (checked Oct. 19–27, 2026)