A South Jersey landscaper and his employee told police that they buried a mother of two alive and poured lime on her body before covering her up and leaving her for dead.

Fatima Perez thought she was going to buy a car for $8,000 when landscaper and friend Carlos Alicea-Antonetti picked her up Monday night.

Instead she was headed towards her death.

One of the 41-year-old’s suspected killers led police to a shallow grave near Clayton Road between Corkery Lane and Tuckahoe Road in Monroe Township, N.J. Wednesday morning.

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That suspect, Ramon Ortiz, told detectives that he helped his Villa Coamo Landscaping and General Maintenance boss Alicea-Antonetti bury Perez, according to probable cause statement obtained by NBC10.com. Ortiz, 57, also allegedly told police that Perez was alive when they placed her in the hole.

"For a woman of her character and stature to have died in this manner is horrible and very traumatic to her family," said Camden County Prosecutor Warren Faulk.

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Investigators say Perez died from asphyxiation and ruled her death a homicide.

Police say Alicea-Antonetti, 36, told investigators that he picked up Perez at her N 41st Street, Camden home on Monday night to take her to get a car she found on Craigslist. At some point the two began to argue and Alicea-Antonetti says Perez fell out of his van during the argument, according to police.

Alicea-Antonetti said Perez was hurt in the fall but still managed to get back in his van. At this point, he told police he picked up his employee, Ortiz, from a job site as Perez laid in the back of the van.

The two men then allegedly tied up Perez and placed duct tape over her mouth and eyes before driving to a wooded area where Ortiz dug a hole, according to Alicea-Antonetti’s statement to police.

Alicea-Antonetti said Perez was still breathing as they poured lime on her body and covered her up. He said Ortiz tried to disguise the shallow grave by placing branches and debris over top.

Ortiz told police that his boss picked him up and that he didn’t even notice Perez at first because she was already tied up in the back of the van. He told police that they drove along Route 42 until Alicea-Antonetti pulled off to a wooded area and directed Ortiz to dig a hole.

Police said Ortiz couldn’t describe the exact location of the grave but that he was able to lead police to the spot, according to investigators.

Investigators said Alicea-Antonetti had about $7,000 on him at the time of his arrest. Perez's family suspects money was the motive behind her murder.

Both Ortiz and Alicea-Antonetti are set to be arraigned in Camden County on Thursday afternoon.

Perez's mother told NBC10 that her daughter came to America from Nicaragua eight years ago for a better life. 

The annual Bike to Work Day originally scheduled for Friday has been moved to Monday after forecasts predict heavy rainfall will hit the region Friday.

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"Rescheduling is never a good thing for an event, but we think a lot of people would look at Friday's forecast and say I'm not going to want to bike home in this," said Nicholas Mirra, spokesman for the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia.

Mirra anticipates hearing some flak from critics about biking being a poor choice for commuters because of weather variations, but explained that a downpour would take away from the celebratory nature of the event.

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"You can certainly bike to work in the rain," he said. "But the communal, celebratory aspects of this aren't going to be facilitated by riding in the rain."

Aside from the date, no other details about the event has changed.

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Bicyclists will meet at Lloyd Hall at 1 Boathouse Row along Kelly Drive beginning at 7:30 a.m. Monday. The group of riders will depart around 8:15 a.m., heading towards the Art Museum and then down Ben Franklin Parkway to LOVE Park at 15th Street and John F. Kennedy Boulevard.

A few hundred bicyclists, including Mayor Michael Nutter, participated in last year's event.

Officials with the Mayor's office have yet to confirm if Nutter will lead the pack this year.

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Regardless of who shows on Monday, Mirra expects Bike to Work Day to show biking is a feasible transportation option.

"Bicycling is a viable and enjoyable way to get around the city," he said. "Bike to Work Day is a celebration of bicycling as a fun way to get to work."

Contact Alison Burdo at 610.668.5635, alison.burdo@nbcuni.com or follow @NewsBurd on Twitter.

A major revitalization including a hotel and retail project is coming to Delaware County.

State Rep. Margo Davidson, D-Delaware, joined other leaders Thursday afternoon to discuss the plan to bring business back to 69th Street in Upper Darby.

The event was held outside the old Sears Building near Walnut Street. That property will serve as a focal point of bringing more shoppers to Upper Darby.

The project is expected to be funded in part by state grants obtained by lawmakers.

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Two children were injured when the school bus they were riding on and another car collided Thursday afternoon.

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The accident happened on the 700 block of Sproul Road in Broomall, Delaware County just before 4 p.m.

Emergency crews were dispatched to the scene. Two children suffered minor injuries.

This is a developing story. Check back for more details.

A Chester County rooster is dead for doing something he does best, according to Pennsylvania State Police.

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Police say that West Bradford resident Telford Eugene Blevins, 63, bashed his neighbor's rooster's head in with a metal bat for crowing too early in the morning.

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The rooster, Blevins told authorities, was crowing consistently at 3:30 a.m. because its timing was off.

He says that he asked his Cresmont Drive neighbor, Sheila Hampton, to get rid of her pet rooster, but his alleged requests were ignored, according to State Trooper Colby Shesko.

Hampton found her beloved pet dead outside her home last Friday, police said.

Blevins is facing animal cruelty charges.





 

An alternate juror who didn’t get a chance to express her belief in Tony Mack’s innocence asked the judge overseeing the case for leniency in the sentencing of the former Trenton mayor in a letter, which also referred to the former Trenton mayor’s guilty verdict as “rushed.”

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“The prosecution did not prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt,” wrote Sherie Jackson, who went on to explain if the random selection had made her part of the jury instead of an alternate she’d still be arguing for Mack’s innocence.

“I was so devastated when my fellow jurors returned the verdict they did because it felt as though they had not been in the same courtroom as I,” Jackson continued. “I hesitate to criticize my fellow jurors, but I must tell Your Honor I feel the verdict was rushed. In the jury room I heard plans to go [on] a cruise, to a relative’s wedding, and an overall atmosphere of impatience as the trial stretched on.” 

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In February a jury found Mack guilty of bribery, fraud and extortion after he was busted as part of a government sting. On Thursday a judge sentenced Mack to 58 months behind bars, and ordered him to pay a $3,000 fine and complete 100 hours of community service over a 6-month span.

His brother, Ralphiel Mack, was also convicted on extortion and bribery charges earlier this year. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison Thursday.

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Both the ex-mayor and his sibling could have received several decades in prison. Mack’s attorney, Mark Davis, asked U.S. District Judge Michael Shipp to issue a sentence of no more than 38 months, citing the humiliation he has already suffered as a more severe punishment than a lengthy jail sentence.

The alternate juror also requested the judge show compassion.

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“I am asking Your Honor for the utmost leniency in the sentences given to both Mack brothers,” she wrote. “I trust that your even-keeled temperament and strong will I saw everyday during the trial will weight this statement of trust as you consider sentencing. Please, for the sake of justice, spare these men a harsh fate.”

Judge Shipp recommended 63 to 78 months during Thursday’s hearing before ruling Mack would spend 58 months behind bars. 

Mack plans to appeal the sentencing, which is expected to begin within the next three months, according to Davis. 

Contact Alison Burdo at 610.668.5635, alison.burdo@nbcuni.com or follow @NewsBurd on Twitter.

For Quiana McKissick, there’s no such thing as a quick stop at her neighborhood grocery store.

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Nearly every time the 38-year-old West Philadelphian, who has limb deformities and uses a motorized wheelchair, tries to shop at The Fresh Grocer at 56th and Chestnut Streets she is forced to wait outside. Not because the store doesn’t have a way for her to get in, but because they keep the accessible entrances padlocked.

"So 98 percent of the time I’m on my own. I have to rely on the kindness of strangers to go and get the guard for me," McKissick said standing next to a locked handicapped accessible gate outside the store. "In the meantime, I just have to sit here and look silly, and it’s rather humiliating, really."

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The supermarket uses metal poles, anchored into cement, to prevent people from taking carts out into the parking lot, and the two accessible ways through the blockade are chained and kept under lock and key.

PHOTO: Quiana McKissick waits outside the Fresh Grocer in West Philadelphia, which has been locking its handicap accessible door preventing her from entering whenever she wishes.

So no matter the weather, McKissinck says she’s forced to wait outside for a security guard to let her in -- which could range from a minute or so to 10 or more, depending on what the guard is dealing with. When no one is around to help, McKissick said she’s forced to go home empty-handed.

"It’s very degrading. I should be able to come and go as I please,” she said. "I shouldn’t have to stand out here and wait in the cold or rain or in the heat just to get in or out of the store. It’s embarrassing."

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McKissick says she’s been dealing with the issue for nearly six years and her complaints have yet to produce a permanent positive change. The woman said several years ago she spoke with a former store manager who said the gates are kept locked to prevent the carts from being stolen.

His solution, she says, was to install a bell outside for her to ring when she wanted to shop.

"He says, ‘Well, we’ll put a bell out there and you can ring the bell.’ And there was a bell there for about two days. That was humiliating," she said.

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McKissick says she also contacted the Department of Licenses & Inspections twice about the issue. Both times, she said the problem was immediately addressed. But within a few weeks, she said the gate was again locked up.

“My concern is, what if there’s a fire or something inside of there and everybody is scattering? The guard’s not going to be thinking about me,” the woman said.

PHOTO: A view of the Fresh Grocer Store at 56th and Chestnut Streets in West Philadelphia.

The supermarket’s current manager, Jeff Beaky, declined to comment and referred the issue to the chain’s corporate office. The store is one of seven locally-owned supermarkets that operate as part of the Wakefern Corporation grocery store co-op. The organization runs Fresh Grocer and ShopRite stores.

Carly Spross, spokeswoman for the local supermarket group, was shocked to hear about the issues McKissick has been encountering and said the gate is only supposed to be locked while the store is closed.

“I feel terrible that it’s gone unnoticed,” she said. “Per our standard operating procedures, the handicap access gate is to be locked each night after closing and unlocked each morning upon the store’s opening.”

Spross apologized, saying managers are reviewing opening and closing procedures with all store employees to ensure the issue is resolved.

Ralph DiPietro, Deputy Commissioner for the Department of Licenses & Inspections, said the department is investigating whether the building code at the time the grocery store was opened requires the gate to be accessible. If that is the case, DiPietro said an inspector will be dispatched to the store to investigate and, if needed, issue a violation.

Asked about whether L&I would enforce compliance of the Americans With Disabilities Act, DiPietro said the city cannot directly enforce the law because it's federal legislation. However, building codes recognized by the city do mimic the federal law.

So why does McKissick continue to shop at the store that makes it so difficult for her to shop?

“I shouldn’t have to go out of my way just to get the things that I need, if this is the closest one to my home. Why should I have to travel?” she said.

Contact Vince Lattanzio at 610.668.5532, vince.lattanzio@nbcuni.com or follow @VinceLattanzio on Twitter.

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It sounds like a plot from a soap opera, but this kidnapping was a very scary reality for one Jewish man in New Jersey. The reluctant husband says he was abducted and beaten until he agreed to grant his wife a divorce.

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Chaim Baruch Rubin, 32, and David Aryeh Epstein, 39, were arrested Thursday, nearly five years after they allegedly took part in the violent kidnapping as part of a plot to coerce the victim into giving his wife a Jewish divorce, also known as a "get."

Police say the victim --  who is not named in the federal court documents -- and his wife were living in Brooklyn, New York when they separated in the summer of 2009. In November of that year, the victim was recruited by Rubin to move to Lakewood, New Jersey for a job at a document destruction company.

A few days after starting his job, Rubin asked the victim to stay late for a private meeting, according to court records. Later that evening, the victim was attacked by a group of men, which included Epstein, the son of a New York rabbi, while walking to his car, according to the criminal complaint.

It says his head was covered with his own jacket, he was bound with zip ties and tape, put in a van, beaten and shocked with a stun gun. He told investigators that he was taken to another location and forced to recite the words necessary for a get to a rabbi who got into the van and recorded the conversation with a video camera.

In terms of strict Jewish law or observance, a get is issued to absolve a marriage. A woman who remarries without a get is not recognized as married and a child produced from that marriage would be a considered a bastard child in the Jewish community.

“Without a get, no matter how long the couple is separated, and no matter how many civil documents they may have in their file cabinet, in the eyes of Jewish law the couple is still 100% married,” according to a Jewish Divorce 101 article on the website Chabad.org.

If a husband refuses to give a get he's, in a sense, leaving the woman in limbo.

One leader of the Jewish community in Ocean County, N.J., who did not want to be named for fear, he said, of repercussions, told NBC10.com the Jewish divorce decree is more likely to be recognized and used by orthodox members of the community. He also said he is not surprised to hear about a case of alleged coercion.

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"Let's just say this is not the first time this has happened, but let's just say that most of the time, the guys don't get caught...And there are women who have literally been left stranded for years."

The reluctant husband was eventually tossed out of the van, and left on the side of the road. After making his way to a nearby house to call for help, he was treated for broken ribs, a bruised spine and other injuries.

Rubin and Epstein were arrested in their Lakewood homes. Both were released on $500,000 bail with house arrest.

If they're found guilty, Rubin, Epstein and eight others, four of whom have already pleaded guilty to extortion charges, face a maxium sentence of life behind bars.

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Need to update your social media avatar? Many people turn to selfies. There's no escaping them on your social media newsfeeds. One Montgomery County woman is offering a new artistic twist on the self-portrait -- the unselfie.

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"We are so saturated today with everybody and their selfies. Everybody is just snapping pictures. It's not original anymore," said Abington illustrator Michele Melcher. "I don't think people realize they are individuals."

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Melcher has launched "The Unselfie Project" on Kickstarter to celebrate the originality of people.

The public can support Melcher's work and get their very own unselfie by supporting her campaign, which ends on May 31. So far, she has 229 backers and has raised $12,000 which is more than double her goal.

She offers various levels of support with different perks. An original black and white unselfie is $30 and a color unselfie is $50. The highest level of support is $650. This backer level receives an old master watercolor unselfie, and original painting. Donors levels starting at $30 or more receive a personalized digitally drawn unselfie digital file for their use. Backers are permitted to submit photos of their pets too.

Melcher describes her portrait project as "more graphic and not photo realistic." She uses flat colors to give her work an organic feel.

Melcher grew up in Pipersville, Bucks County. It was her rural upbringing that spawned her interest in art and taken her far.

"I've been drawing since I was a kid. I grew up in the middle of nowhere. Drawing was what I did to pass the time," she said.

For the past decade, she's been an illustrator drawing children's books and campaigns for corporate clients. The University of the Arts graduate is taking her talent to a new clientele on the Internet via the unselfie project.

After Melcher graduated from school, the pressure was to move to New York City to get illustration work. The rise of the Internet and social media has allowed her to work for top clients right from her home in Montgomery County. So now she's drawing upon social media and crowdfunding to propel her work beyond her corporate work.

After the Kickstarter campaign ends, Melcher plans to offer unselfies on her website as an option for purchase.

Contact Sarah Glover at 610-668-5580, sarah.glover@nbcuni.com or follow @skyphoto on Twitter.

A suspected con man who allegedly uses fake cashier's checks to buy vehicles, electronics and jewelry has been charged with stealing a $9,000 diamond ring from a Pittsburgh jewelry store the same way -- while also pretending to be blind.

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The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports the suspect, 47-year-old Taurus Centaur, of McHenry, Maryland, has been jailed in Georgia, one of seven states where a Pennsylvania state police alert say he's suspected of crimes.

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Police say Centaur used the name Joseph Carroll when he called Goldstock Diamonds in February and claimed to be a blind man who needed help from an expert jeweler to buy an engagement ring. Centaur arrived at the store the next day wearing fancy clothes, and a blind man's cane and sunglasses and paid with a cashier's check that later turned out to be fake.
 

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A pregnant woman is thankful that her life and the life of her unborn child were spared following an armed robbery at a West Philadelphia bodega.

Giselle Jaquez says she was helping her aunt, Emelanie Rodriquez, at her family's bodega on S. 54th Street when a masked man stormed into the store with his gun drawn.

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Not only were Jaquez and her aunt in the bodega at the time of the robbery, so was the victim's two-year-old daughter.

"I was scared and worried because my baby was right there too," says Jaquez. "I'm pregnant."

The incident, which was caught on the store's surveillance cameras, happened just before lunchtime Thursday.

Jaquez tells NBC10 that she was standing behind the counter when the masked man barged in, pushed Rodriguez to the corner of the store and held a gun to her head before turning the gun to her.

Jaquez says she shoved money into the man's hands before a customer came in and scared him off. The gunman took off running.

Police are reviewing the surveillance video. Anyone with information on the crime is urged to call police.

"Their heart is like a rock, they don't feel nothing for nobody," says Jaquez of her attacker.