State Briefly
Man sentenced for possessing thousands of child porn images
NEWARK » An elderly New Jersey man who had thousands of child sex abuse images and videos on his home computer has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison.
Mark Derzko must also register as a sex offender and pay $24,000 in restitution as part of the 97-month sentence imposed Tuesday. The 74-year-old Mine Hill man had pleaded guilty in May to distributing child porn.
Federal prosecutors say Derzko used a peer-to-peer file-sharing program to download the videos and images.
Law enforcement officials downloaded more than two dozen videos from Derzko’s computer in 2016. They eventually found more than 2,000 videos and over 8,000 images when they executed a search warrant at his home in October 2016.
Police: Road rage results in tractor-trailer flipping over
MAHWAH » Police say a road rage confrontation resulted in a tractor-trailer flipping over on a New Jersey highway.
Mahwah police say the driver of an SUV thought a truck was being driven aggressively and was recklessly changing lanes on Route 17. Police say the SUV driver pulled in front of the truck and slowed down.
Video released by police on Tuesday shows the truck driver lost control and hit the median before the trailer slid across the highway. No other vehicles were struck.
Both motorists were issued tickets for careless driving.
Police say the SUV driver should have called 911 to report the tractor-trailer driver.
Heat index in US Northeast tops 100; girl dies in hot car
NEW YORK » The dangerously high heat in the Northeastern United States has prompted emergency measures including extra breaks for players wilting at the U.S. Open tennis tournament.
In several states, children are being released from school early on Wednesday, and the elderly without air conditioning are urged to go to cooling centers.
The National Weather Service says temperatures in the 90s combined with high humidity are pushing the heat index past 100. Authorities on Long Island say heat appears to be a factor in the death of an 11-year-old girl found in a vehicle with the windows closed. At the U.S. Open in Queens, an extreme heat policy allows for 10-minute breaks between sets from the heat-absorbing courts. Temperatures are expected to ease into the 80s on Thursday.
Ex-investment adviser admits stealing at least $2 million
NEWARK » A former broker and investment adviser has admitted stealing at least $2 million from his clients.
Federal prosecutors say Gary Basralian stole the money over a 10-year period and spent it on personal expenses, including payments on a BMW and tens of thousands of dollars in credit card bills.
The 70-year-old Springfield man pleaded guilty Wednesday to wire fraud and investment adviser fraud. He now faces up to 25 years in prison when he’s sentenced Dec. 3.
Basralian worked for many years at a Jersey City-based securities firm. Prosecutors say he defrauded his clients by falsely telling them he would invest their money in securities and other investments and then misappropriated the money.
Carrie Inaba, Ross Mathews tapped as ‘Miss America’ hosts
ATLANTIC CITY » “Dancing with the Stars” host Carrie Ann Inaba and television personality Ross Mathews will co-host this year’s Miss America competition.
Pageant officials made the announcement Wednesday.
Inaba was the pageant’s choreographer for many years, but will be hosting the show for the first time. Mathews will provide reports throughout the evening from backstage while also providing commentary and updates.
The next Miss America will be crowned at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall in a nationally televised broadcast on Sept. 9. It will be the first competition since the Miss America Organization made sweeping leadership changes in the wake of an email scandal that led to the ouster of the pageant’s top leadership and eliminated the pageant’s swimsuit competition.