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by Carolyne Volpe Curley / Carolyne@WestEssexNOW.com Published 8:35pm  IMAGE: Essex County This evening Fairfield Police Chief Anthony Manna announced the arrest of Nicholas Didio-Slaaen, 21, of Fairfield for incidents which occurred just after midnight on Sunday.
As Fairfield Police arrived at the scene, they observed some of the cars starting to drive in order onto Route 80 East. One of the cars, a grey Dodge Charger, struck a 2020 Mazda MX5 and then apparently fled onto Route 80 East. Officers recognized the Dodge driver, by sight, as Fairfield resident Nicholas Slaaen. The officers attempted to get Slaaen to pull over but instead he reportedly drove off at a high rate of speed and pulled away from the police pursuit. Fairfield officers then called Slaaen on his cellphone and asked that he surrender himself. The suspect reported to police that:
About an hour later, Livingston Police stopped the same Dodge Charger at 1:30am, and determined that Slaaen was the driver. Livingston Police took him into custody, impounded the Dodge sports car, and Fairfield Police took over the case. CHARGES Fairfield Police charged Nicholas Didio-Slaaen with:
Slaaen was transported to the Essex County Correctional Facility and his hearing will take place before the superior court in Newark.
by Carolyne Volpe Curley / Carolyne@WestEssexNOW.com First Published 9:20pm, Thursday, July 25  2019 Nissan, owned by Struss IMAGE: Fairfield Police FAIRFIELD, NJ - Fairfield Police have arrested Jason S. Struss, 43, of Oakland, after last night's accident, and subsequent three-hour search throughout the Fairfield area. West Essex area police offered mutual aid, along with the Fairfield Fire Department, West Essex First Aid Squad, Essex County Sheriff's Department and NJ State police until Struss was eventually found and arrested on Alan Drive in Fairfield. The incident began last night at about 9:23pm when repeated calls came into the headquarters notifying police that a car had flipped over multiple times after crashing with another vehicle on Route 46 West. Fairfield Police immediately responded and located what turned out to be a 2019 Nissan, owned by Struss, near a parking lot at 333 Route 46. Witnesses told police that they saw a man run off from the car, northwards away from the scene, after throwing off a shirt. Witnesses described the male as:
The Fairfield Fire Department responded to handle the fuel leak which had been caused by the accident. Mutual aid came quickly from the West Essex area police departments of North Caldwell and West Caldwell. The officers assisted Fairfield Police, including Chief of Police Gary Manna, in spreading out across the area, searching yards and businesses, including the nearby hotels. Additional Fairfield Police attended to the driver of the first car, a 2008 Mazda. The West Essex First Aid Squad was dispatched to treat the first driver.  2008 Mazda IMAGE: Fairfield Police "Responding officers immediately attended to a thirty-six year old female from Newark who was the operator of a 2008 Mazda," reported Manna. "She was eventually transported to St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Paterson." The Essex County Sheriff's K-9 Unit arrived but unfortunately they were not able to track any scent. Plans were put in place to use Fairfield's new drone as well as a thermal-imagery camera. “There were strong indications that Struss was injured in the crash, however to what extent could not be determined” said Manna. “That is why we continued to aggressively search and employed some special investigative techniques in order to try and find Struss to assure he was not dying somewhere.” By 11pm, the NJ State Police began searching along the Route 80 area and officers continued to search yard by yard through Fairfield neighborhoods. Police were able to determine who owned the car, and through that they obtained his cellphone number. By pinging the phone they were also able to triangulate its location to the Alan Drive neighborhood. Concentrating their efforts on locating a man who they surmised was heavily injured, and knowing that the phone was in close range, police proactively decided to call it. The suspect reportedly answered the phone, and was apparently confused by the person calling him. He was said to have stated that he was lost in Fairfield and needed to be picked up. Then the suspect hung up and when police next texted him, they could hear the sound of the cellphone receiving the text very close by. Struss was soon located hiding near the home. "This investigation led officers to the area of 34 Alan Drive, a residential neighborhood approximately a quarter mile or so from the accident scene," stated Manna. "At 11:41pm, Sergeant John McGrory found Struss secreted in some shrubbery along the side of the house. He was taken into custody without incident. It is alleged that, while searching the area before finding Struss’ hiding place, he knew he was close as he stated he could smell the odor of an  Jason S. Struss, of Oakland IMAGE: Fairfield Police Struss was arrested and the West Essex First Aid Squad transported him to Morristown Memorial Hospital for evaluation. Struss was later released from the hospital and at police headquarters he was charged with:
Struss was then returned to Morristown Memorial Hospital for additional evaluation. Investigating Officers Sergeant Christopher Niemiec and Officer Daniel Moran have determined that the female driver's Mazda was travelling west on Route 46 in the right lane and Struss’ Nissan was directly behind her in the same lane and that it hit her from behind. Police believe Struss’ Nissan struck the left rear of the Mazda, which caused it to spin, strike a utility pole and come to rest on the lawn of 333 Route 46. Witnesses have told police that the Nissan may have flipped as many as four times before it came to rest, right side up, near the driveway of 333 Route 46. Route 46 West was closed until about 1am and Chief Manna commended the work of all of the responding emergency personnel "in both the treatment of the injured and the apprehension of the suspect." “We are extremely thankful that no one was seriously hurt or killed in this crash” said the chief. North Caldwell Police Sergeant Hospitalized After Police Pursuit: Five Arrests Made by Carolyne Volpe Curley / Carolyne@WestEssexNOW.com First Published 5am  NORTH CALDWELL, NJ - Early Wednesday morning, North Caldwell Police received a report of suspicious individuals running through a backyard on Mountain Avenue near White Oak Road. The incident led to a responding officer, North Caldwell Police Sergeant John Belotta, being hospitalized after reportedly being dragged by the driver of a stolen car. Multiple departments responded and ultimately five were arrested, while two cars which were reported stolen in Morris County were recovered. At about 4:51am this morning, North Caldwell Police responded to Mountain Avenue investigating the suspicious individuals and at the same time called in Caldwell Police Department and West Caldwell Police Department to assist with the investigation. Caldwell and West Caldwell officers patrolled Mountain Avenue while North Caldwell officers patrolled the side street areas. A few minutes later, at 4:54am, another call came into North Caldwell headquarters from a resident reporting that they could seeing individuals running on Mountain Avenue toward Knollwood Drive. At 4:57am, Cedar Grove Police were also dispatched to assist. While patrolling the area at 5:03am, Sergeant Belotta spotted two cars driving on Deer Trail Road headed to Brookside Terrace. Police later determined that the two cars were stolen last night out of Morris Plains and Maplewood:
"The driver of the stolen Jeep North Caldwell officers were able to apprehend two individuals on Brookside Terrace and placed them under arrest. Although injured, Belotta was able to report that the cars drove away towards Mountain Avenue and by 5:05am, Verona Police was also sent out to assist the investigation. At 5:26am, a Verona patrol officer on Smull Avenue saw the two wanted cars drive past him on Mountain Avenue headed towards Bloomfield Avenue. At 5:30am, another Verona patrol officer witnessed multiple persons bail out of a car at Ryerson Avenue near Grove Street in Caldwell. The officer followed after the suspects on foot and reported to the other responding units that they were running in the area of Fells Road and Devon Road, in Essex Fells. At 5:32am, Roseland Police were dispatched to assist after the suspects were seen behind Devon Road residences near Avon Drive. Soon after, Livingston Police were dispatched to assist at 5:36am. North Caldwell officers were on foot as they witnessed individuals running through the backyards of Devon Road going through the connecting Fells Road backyards. At the same time, at about 5:39am, Verona officers reported seeing suspects near a residence on Fells Road. By 5:49am, the Verona patrol office witnessed a suspect on Devon Road. Soon he was subdued, and the final arrest was made. Deuer reported that, in total, five arrests were made in Essex Fells and North Caldwell and 1 gun was recovered. The individuals arrested reside in Maplewood, Newark and Irvington. Within minutes, Caldwell Police reported they were with the two stolen cars which were located at the dead end of Grove Street, Caldwell. North Caldwell Chief Mark Deuer:  PHOTO: North Caldwell Police Department According to Deuer, by 9:45am, Essex County Sheriff's Department Crime Scene Unit, along with the Prosecutor's Office and officers from Maplewood and Morris Plains Police Departments responded to the scene and police headquarters to process the incidents.
This investigation is ongoing, and police request that anyone with video or information should contact them:
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