4 Belleville Cops Arrested After N.J. Bar Brawl With Civilians: Prosecutor

BELLEVILLE, NJ — Authorities have arrested and charged several Belleville police officers for allegedly getting into a heated brawl with a group of civilians while off-duty at a North Arlington bar, prosecutors announced Monday.

According to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, the fight took place around 1 a.m. on Oct. 21. After the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office notified their counterparts about the incident 10 days later, the BCPO launched an investigation that confirmed the Belleville police officers were involved in a physical altercation inside the bar with civilian patrons.

Prosecutors stated that bar security led the officers and civilians outside, but the melee continued until Lyndhurst and North Arlington police officers arrived on the scene and took control of the situation.

Emergency responders transported one of the civilians to Hackensack University Medical Center for minor medical attention; he was later released.

At the time of the incident, no criminal charges were filed against any person involved in the physical altercation, the BCPO stated on Monday. However, subsequent charges against the Belleville officers included:

• John Clarizo, 32, of Nutley – one count of simple assault, hindering apprehension (for allegedly providing false information to a Lyndhurst officer)
• Marco Zarfino, 24, of Belleville – two counts of simple assault
• Jesse McKeough, 28, of Belleville – one count of simple assault
• Giovanni Casillo, 39, of Wayne – one count of simple assault

In addition to the Belleville police officers, authorities also charged a local pool technician, Vasilios Theofanidis, 39, of Lyndhurst, with simple assault for his alleged participation in the brawl.

The four Belleville officers and Theofanidis are scheduled to appear in Bergen County Central Judicial Processing Court for a first appearance on Dec. 14.

All four officers have been suspended without pay, Belleville Police Chief Mark Minichini told Patch on Tuesday.

Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal thanked the Belleville Police Department for their assistance in the investigation in a Monday news release.

File Photo: Flickr Commons