$2B Gambling Ring Busted / Bears Roam School Campus / Body Found In Passaic River / Cops Storm Hotel For Suspects

HEADLINES

Six Members Of Lucchese Crime Family Plead Guilty To $2.2B Gambling Ring Involvement

• Six high-ranking member of the Lucchese crime family have pleaded guilty to racketeering as a result of an investigation by the state Division of Criminal Justice called Operation Heat, authorities announced.

Half-Eaten Dolphin, Possibly A Shark Victim, Washes Up At Jersey Shore

• A half-eaten dolphin that was possibly eaten by a shark washed up on a beach at the Jersey Shore this week.

Bridge Inspector’s Body Found In Passaic River

• The body of a 47-year-old bridge inspector who was swept into the Passaic River Monday was found in Rutherford Wednesday, authorities said.

Essex And Passaic Cops Storm Hotel In Search Of Robbery Suspects

• Police officers from agencies across the region converged on the La Quinta Inn on Route 3 in Clifton on Thursday to help apprehend three Essex County men suspected of robbing a local taxi driver at gunpoint.

Prosecutor: Hillsborough Man, Two Others Busted For Armed Bank Robbery In Somerset County

• Three men were charged in connection with an armed bank robbery in Somerset County on Friday, according to authorities.

Bears Roam Campus of Somerset County High School

• School put on lockdown for most of the day and students were escorted to cars as a safety precaution.

Head Of Landmark Dinosaur Removed For Safekeeping

• Dino the Dinosaur, a Bayville landmark that’s stood through 82 years of rain, snow, heat, and cold had its head removed this week as a precaution. An ominous crack in Dino’s neck appeared and grew larger day by day so surgery was needed.

Christie’s Travel Expenses Pile Up: NBA Finals, $124,000 For Foreign Trips

• Gov. Chris Christie’s travel expenses continue to pile up at taxpayers’ expense - though his political supporters paid the tab for his recent trip to the NBA Finals.

New Jersey Plan To Ban Smoking With Kids In Car Advances

• It’s becoming more likely that New Jersey smokers eventually won’t be able to light up in vehicles with children who are 16 years old or younger.

‘Drunken Oafs’ Terrify Hoboken Family Vacationing In England

• A Hoboken man on vacation in England reported that a bunch of “drunken oafs” ruined his visit to Cambridge.

GOOD NEWS

• Parents of Rutgers Student Who Killed Himself Launch New Campaign To End Bullying
• Family Of Dog Killed By Cop Adopts New German Shepherd
• Montclair State University Is National Leader in Hispanic Graduate Rate, Report Claims
• Caldwell University Gets Award For ‘Walk A Mile In Her Shoes Event’
• All-Female College OKs Male Enrollment for Fall 2016

EVENTS

• Waterloo Village Antiques Fair
• 16th Annual Declaration of Independence Reading And Celebration
• Just Jersey Food Truck And Music Festival
• The Birchwood Manor Antiques Show
• Third Annual Firefly Festival At Duke Farms