FBI gets tips from South Brunswick

Police Department has forwarded 16 reports of suspicious activity.

By: Brian Shappell
   The South Brunswick Police Department has forwarded 16 reports of suspicious activity to the FBI. Of those, nine have been closed and one led to an arrest after someone made a false police report.
   The reports are just a few of the 4,000 tips the Federal Bureau of Investigation has received from New Jersey residents related to the World Trade Center terrorist attack in the last two weeks.
   "In light of the recent events, every report is being taken with the utmost seriousness," said Public Information Officer Jim Ryan of the tips. "I believe this is very common throughout the state."
   People have given reports to police of "suspicious behavior" that includes everything from a neighbor moving suddenly after the Sept. 11 tragedy, to a man with an apparently false license, to a residence receiving deliveries of large packages.
   "There has been a wide range," Officer Ryan said. "They’re all being investigated but none have merited further action."
   The FBI has detained four suspects as material witnesses related to terrorist activity in the last two weeks, one of which had a strong New Jersey, said Sandra Carroll, an FBI special agent and spokeswoman for the bureau’s New Jersey office in Newark.
   She said the FBI continues to encourage people to come forward with information and tips despite the fact that many leads have led nowhere and others have been cases of overreaction.
   "We’re pleased with the information we’ve received," Ms. Carroll said. "Some information has been more accurate than others."
   Ms. Carroll said the number of tips from New Jersey is between 3,000-4,000.
   "Some have resulted in furthering our investigation a great deal," she said.
   Ms. Carroll would not comment on whether the FBI is aiding in any of the six investigations still open from the South Brunswick tips. Officer Ryan said the department is still working on the six cases.
   The only arrest to date was of Katheryn Lombardi, a 41-year-old township resident who has been charged with filing a false police report after providing authorities with a fictitious lead.
   According to police, Ms. Lombardi, called police around 9 p.m. Sept. 19 to report she had found a tape while at a motel in Seaside Heights, the same one that a suspect in the World Trade Center attack had stayed. Ms. Lombardi allegedly said the tape contained people speaking in Arabic and occasionally speaking in English with comments such as "kill them all" or other anti-American statements.
   "It was determined there was no substance to the claim," Officer Ryan said. "All we heard was a person singing in English."
   Officer Ryan said police are still looking for any information people may have on suspicious activity which could be tied to terrorist activity. However, he said fabrications of the truth will continue to receive harsh reaction from police.
   "We all need to have a heightened awareness so we’re welcoming all legitimate concerns," he said. "But if it’s obviously a fraudulent claim and draws resources away from legitimate investigations, we’re going to charge the person."