MONROE: Reports hint at neighbor tensions

By David Kilby, Special Writer
   MONROE — While police reports provide very few details, a picture of a long-ranging dispute between two families emerges, which may have led to the alleged bombing of a township home on July 14.
   Michael Cavallo, 18, and Johnathan Cavallo, 22, of 56 Bay Hill Blvd. along with Matthew Debski, 20, of Brandon Avenue allegedly delivered several explosive devices at the Bezerra residence on Laquinta Court in the early morning hours of July 14, with two of the explosives setting the attic on fire and another exploding in a teenage daughter’s bedroom, according to police.
   The three men are each charged with 21 counts in the alleged attack, including eight counts each of arson, five counts each of aggravated assault, one count each of criminal mischief, one count each of trespass and six counts each of possession of explosive devices for an unlawful purpose, according to police.
   After hearing from neighbors and the alleged victims in the case about prior incidents, The Cranbury Press filed an Open Public Records Act request with the Monroe Township Police Department and the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office for all reports dealing with either the suspects or calls where police responded to the involved addresses.
   The paper received a dozen, very vague reports from The Monroe Township Police Department.
   While the reports were very limited on the details of the incidents, they did reveal that police have responded to a dozen calls involving Johnathan Cavallo, Michael Cavallo or the Cavallo residence since 2004.
   The reports also reveal that there may be a history of disputes between Johnathan Cavallo and Alexander Bezerra, the teenage son of the family that lives at the house that was allegedly assaulted.
   For instance, one of the reports vaguely describes a first aid call involving the two young men. A first aid squad was called to the Cavallo residence on Sept. 23, 2010 at 1:01 a.m. for Alexander Bezerra and Johnathan Cavallo. A man by the name of Boanerges Bezerra, the owner of the home allegedly assaulted on Laquinta Court, is listed as a parent and Andrea Cavallo, the mother of the brothers, is listed as a resident in the report, but no other details are given.
   A more recent report on April 8 at 9:20 p.m. said police were called by Robert Cavallo, father of Johnathan and Michael, to 56 Bay Hill Blvd. for a verbal dispute between Alexander Bezerra and Johnathan Cavallo.
   Less than two months before the April 8 incident, on Feb. 18 at about 10:30 a.m., police responded to a “suspicious incident” involving the same Johnathan Cavallo, Matthew Debski, Michael Cavallo and Robert Cavallo, at the same residence. The report gave no other details on the incident.
   These most recent reports unveil a little bit about the nature of the relationship between the Cavallo and Bezerra households, but there’s more to the story between these two families, according to the documents.
   The earliest report provided by police involving 56 Bay Hill Blvd. dates back to July 28, 2004, when police were called to the house for a case involving a juvenile with no names specified.
   That same summer, on Aug. 3, 2004, police were called to the house again for another juvenile case involving Johnathan Cavallo and Alexander Bezerra at 7:39 p.m. A couple of days later, Aug. 5, Robert Cavallo reported Jeanne Bezerra, Alexander Bezerra and Johnathan Cavallo for trespassing at the same location.
   Police were also called to 56 Bay Hill Blvd. for an animal complaint on July 25, 2005, but no further details were given for this report, either.
   Police were called again to the Cavallo house for malicious mischief on March 9, 2006 at 6:35 p.m., however, no names or further details were given in this report.
   Reports of verbal disputes began on July 28, 2006 at 4:56 p.m. This dispute involved Gloria Venezia, Johnathan Cavallo, and Sabina Konya, but further details are lacking in this report as well.
   Another vague report tells of an incident about a year later on July 15, 2007, when police were called to 56 Bay Hill Blvd. at 12:45 a.m. for a verbal dispute between Johnathan Cavallo and his mother, Andrea.
   One June 8, 2008, Johnathan Cavallo was found on Links Drive, which runs through the middle of the Forsgate gated community, at 1:46 a.m. in what was reported as a “suspicious person.”
   Andrea Cavallo called the police to the house for a “suspicious incident” on Feb. 6, 2010, but no names or further details were given in this report, either.
   None of the reports show any arrests or disciplinary action taken by the police prior to the July 14 incident, even though the Cavallo brothers were reported a dozen times before.
   ”Whatever they (Monroe Police) gave the paper) is what they’re required to give under OPRA (Open Public Records Act), nothing more and nothing less, “ said Joel Shain, Monroe Township attorney. “(Police are) acting under the legal advice of their attorney.”