The footprint of the mysterious creature spotted around Manalapan--and now possibly Freehold--during the last week is believed to be feline.

Though the cat was most recently seen off Taylors Mills Road, Millford Brook, and Tennent Road, readers today reported that it crept to Durand Park in Freehold Township most recently.

Folks at the Township's Shade Tree department, including supervisor Joseph A. Aufiero, said they had not heard or seen anything unusual in the wildlife-filled, but would keep us posted to any out-of-the-ordinary creatures that might appear.

Reader Barney DiBenedetto offered that he also heard reports of the lion spotted on Robertsville Road last week, but reports could not be confirmed.

Email your lion sightings to colleen@injersey.com.

From the report:

Around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, the 15-year-old girl was walking near the intersection of Coldsprings and Village roads when she noticed a man slowly driving toward her in older-model, red sedan.

The man leaned out of the passenger side window and yelled "hey," said Capt. Christopher Marsala.

Read the full story on APP.com | Asbury Park Press.

A surveillance photo shows the suspect passing a robbery note Wednesday afternoon at the Wachovia Bank in Manalapan.

According to a criminal complaint filed by FBI Special Agent Silvana Sotillo in U.S. District Court, 47-year-old Scott MacKay admitted to robbing nine banks since February 2009 when he was taken into custody on Saturday.

The complaint states that in at least two of the robberies - on Oct. 15 in Manchester and on Jan. 28 in Manalapan - MacKay walked into a Wachovia Bank and passed a teller a note stating he had a gun and wanted money.

MacKay allegedly made off with $3,165 from the Wachovia Bank on Lacey Road in Manchester and about $1,100 from the Wachovia Bank on Route 9 in Manalapan.

His arrest by Toms River police this weekend came hours after two additional bank robberies were committed by a person matching MacKay's physical description. No further information on those robberies was available. An FBI spokesman declined comment on the case.

In addition to the Manalapan and Manchester robberies, MacKay is implicated in two heists each in Toms River and Willingboro, as well as banks in Ocean Township in Monmouth County, Stafford and Brick, said Manalapan Police Capt. Christopher Marsala.

The criminal complaint states authorities traced a green, four-door Ford sedan used as a getaway car during the Manchester robbery to MacKay after a law enforcement officer recognized him from a photograph distributed after the Manalapan robbery.

The car, authorities said, was a rental turned in by MacKay the same day as the Manchester robbery.

Following his arrest, MacKay was lodged in Ocean County Jail, Toms River in lieu of $350,000 bail.

Committeewoman Michelle Roth, Mayor Richard Klauber and local Scouts unveil Scout Lake's new sign. Photo by Andy Kazmierski.

Holiday Lake in Manalapan is now Scout Lake, named after about 20 area Boy, Girl and Cub Scout troops who helped breathe new life into the surrounding Holiday Park.

The 13-acre park and lake, off Pease Road, were rededicated at a ceremony Saturday.

Scouts since March have been hard at work building benches and picnic tables for the dog-friendly park. The children and other local volunteers came out a week before the rededication for a cleanup that netted some 25 bags of trash.

The township with the help of the county dredged the lake in September, and the Public Works Department cleared a walking path, set up pet stations and installed a solar aerator and an illuminated fountain aerator last week. The entire project cost the township about $285,000, Committeewoman Michelle Roth said.

"This is a perfect example of a public-private partnership working towards the betterment of our community,'' Roth said.

New Jersey Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife also stocked the lake with 1,100 bass, catfish and black crappie for fishing.

Kimberly Fitzgerald, 12, of Girl Scout Troop #532 of Manalapan, who helped build benches and plant daffodils expected to bloom in spring, said she'll get a new sense of pride when she sees the lake, named after her and her fellow Scout volunteers.

"I liked the name before - it fits,'' Kimberly said. "But at least Scout Lake helps acknowledge some of the people who put the work in to make it beautiful.''

Belaire Lane in Manalapan (Google Streetview)

From the report:

He is described as an older, white, heavy-set man, who wore a red shirt and may have been wearing a red hat. He was last seen driving a white, 2003 Pontiac sedan with a Pennsylvania license plate: DXB 4345, police said.Just before 9:45 a.m., the teen, who was home sick, heard a knock at her front door, but did not answer it, police said.

A short time later, she heard the man force his way into the home through a rear sliding door, said Capt. Christopher Marsala.

The girl locked herself in an upstairs bathroom and called police.

The girl had also called her mother at some point after hearing the knock at the door, and the mother called a neighbor.

So, the neighbor went to the front door of the home, and he knocked, said Marsala.

That's when the burglar ran out the back door and jumped into a car parked nearby, police said.

The neighbor chased the man and was able to obtain the car's license plate number, said Marsala.

Patrolman Charles Alaimo and Detective Michael Ratta are handling the investigation.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the police department's Investigations Bureau at 732-446-4300.

From the report:

Around 8:20 p.m. on Sept. 15, the boy was walking his dog on Arbor Court, near Dogwood Court, when the man got out of a black, four-door sedan and began to walk toward the child, police said.

The frightened boy ran away and the man chased him, but then stopped after about 50 yards, returned to his vehicle, and left, police said.

The man was described as unshaven and white. He was in his 40s or 50s, about 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, weighed about 210 pounds, and had a medium build, brown eyes, a tan complexion, gray or white hair, and a white beard. He wore blue jeans, sneakers, a New York Giants hat and a blue, short-sleeved shirt with a picture of a white face printed on the front. The boy told police the man spoke with an accent.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Detective Leonard Maltese at 732-446-4300 or 732-446-8388.

The story went like this: an editor was eating out one night when he tasted a cheesecake that just had to have a story behind it, it was that good. When he asked, said editor found out that local baker Nussenbaum was the man responsible for the light, creamy slice of heaven at the restaurant, and was soon going to be featured on Rachel Ray . He was a local guy, who started his business out of his condominium kitchen, and now supplied restaurants throughout the area. His business started small, but it was beginning to take off.

Not to be scooped by that Food Network-Nancy, I begged Eric to share his recipe with Freehold.InJersey first. He shot me down, but instead invited me to come watch him make the famed cheesecake in the same small kitchen where he started three years ago.

Eric made two cheesecakes that day, and then 37 more for a few special orders for that night. I took some artistic license to taste each of the cakes, from his most famous glazed maraschino cherry to the tart, rich black cherry (my personal favorite.), and the verdict is in: the man’s got a gift.

The cheesecakes were as light and creamy as the best I’ve tasted, but the magic was in the secret ingredients of the crust: something sweet, slightly nutty, maybe a little aromatic. Oh, who am I kidding, I could never guess what was in it. But I’ll keep trying if it means I can keep eating those tasty creations from Eric’s kitchen.

When May Fromm watched two female veterans of the Iraqi and Gulf Wars pin a medal of honor on her husband, 89-year-old Louis Fromm, a lifetime of soldier stories and wartime memories felt honored and validated.

“That was the highest honor for him and for me,” Fromm, of Manalapan, said afterwards to her daughter, Margaret Tamarkin of Jackson, and friends and staff from the Chelsea Assisted Living Facility in Manalapan where the ceremony was held. “My husband loves this country, and it is important that we remember it.”

Mr. Fromm received the Medal for Meritorious Service last week for his years fighting in Europe and stationed in Fort Dix, NJ, during the Second World War, where he was a Field Artillery Battalion Sergeant. Though he suffers from some dementia, he saluted VFW Post Commanders Terry Ching and Barbara Kim as they pinned the medal and told Mr. Fromm that his service honored them as well.

"It is especially important to remember these soldiers today, their loyalty and service to our country during the war," Mrs. Fromm said of today's military conflicts abroad. "He would go back and fight again if he could."

Mr. Fromm entered the U.S. Army on December 8, 1941, the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and fought across Belgium, Holland, Germany, Austria and France during his years of active duty.

Mrs. Fromm, 86-years-old, and also living at the Chelsea with her husband, remembers those years well.

“I wrote him every day,” she said of Mr. Fromm, whom she met at a party in Brooklyn and “immediately clicked with,” when they were teenagers. “He couldn’t write back too often because, of course, a slip of the lip could sink a ship!”

Mrs. Fromm explained how the public knew less about war developments in that time because restricted media access and censorship.

“It wasn’t in everyone’s living rooms at night,” she explained. “You were always worried about the men over there and what was happening.”

When he returned safely, Mr. Fromm eloped with Mrs. Fromm against his parents’ wishes in Brooklyn, New York, but the two later remarried in a religious ceremony in front of family and friends. The couple then took off together to travel the country—a trip, Mrs. Fromm explained—borne out of Mr. Fromm’s love for America.

“He loved this country more than anything, and he wanted to show it to me. We went to all the bases where he was stationed, and we saw everything,” she said.

When asked about his service during the ceremony, Mr. Fromm said he would reenter the service today if the government would take him, according to Tamarkin.

“My dad was always devoted to the country,” she said later. “He always told us about his camaraderie and brotherly love in the service.”

“He loved talking about it,” Mrs. Fromm agreed. “Some soldiers came back and had to lock it up in their minds, you know, but he was always talking about it. It’s important to talk about it so that we remember,” she said.

Mr. Fromm had previously received the EAME Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, WWII Victory Medal, and American Service Medal. When asked about his service to the country, Mr. Fromm replied, “I’ve had a wonderful life.”

Mrs. Fromm, wiping away tears at her husband's response, smiled and nodded. "We've had a wonderful life, and we love this country."

The creative duo behind "The Nanny Diaries" will be speaking at the Monmouth County Library headquarters at Manalapan on August 31.  They're out promoting their newest collaborative effort, "The Real Real," a novel about an MTV-like reality series filmed at a Hamptons high school.

From the APP's report:

As an added incentive, students entering 6th through 12th grade who arrive on time can enter to win one of 20 free, autographed copies of "The Real Real." A limited number of books will be available for purchase and can be autographed by the authors after the program.

Read the full story and book synopsis here.

Ateer Patel, 19, claimed he saw someone enter his car and remove the cash while the vehicle, a Honda Civic, was parked at the Route 9 station. Patel called police, claiming he was in the car pursuing the suspect, Lt. Tom Barstow said. Patel claimed he was chasing the suspect off Route 9 into a townhome development off Craig Road.

But witness statements and a gas station surveillance video showed Patel simply left the store, got in his car and drove away. A vehicle for which Patel had given a license plate number and description belonged to an associate of Patel’s who had never been on the scene, police said.

Barstow said Patel was charged with filing a false police report and released on his own recognizance. He never gave a reason for the ruse.

Sidebar: I did attempt to call Patel, an intern at a pharmaceutical company, to find out what was up with this (the not knowing was killing me). A number for the family, unfortunately, was disconnected.

Sun Pacific Power would purchase the panels and provide them to commercial, municipal and water treatment sites at no cost, said Sun Pacific spokesman and owner Nick Campanella. The company presented its first pitch to Manalapan Township Committee at its Aug. 12 meeting (Campanella was there. Really. He just didn’t get much attention amidst the brouhaha over the police chief ).

So how does Campanella’s company make its money? He says the company will look to Solar Renewable Energy Certificates and federal and state grants for its funding.

One SREC represents 1 megawatt-hour of electricity, or 1,000 kilowatt-hours, and utilities are required by state regulations to buy them, according to the state Board of Public Utilities.

Campanella, 44, a member of Manalapan’s Economic Development Committee and Environmental Committee, has already pitched the Township Committee and Western Monmouth Utilities Authority. He said he’s hoping to pow-wow with Freehold Regional High School Board of Education, too.

Mayor Richard Klauber said he invited Sun Pacific to make the pitch just so residents and township officials would better understand the concept. He said the Township Committee will decide at a future meeting whether they want to go out to bid for a company to provide the service.

Stay tuned!

Tomorrow night, the Monmouth Creative Writers' Group will host their monthly Thursday-night meeting at the library, where 25-30 aspiring literati will come out to discuss both the art and business of publishing writing in America.

"We work towards publishing," said organizer Arthur Frank, a mystery writer that runs the group at Manalapan and one at the Colts Neck branch of hte library. "There's been in interest in my stories, and another writer in the group is rewriting like crazy right now."

Frank says a core group of writers come regularly to every meeting, but there are many that come whenever they can fit it into their schedules. There is no fee to join the group, and it is relatively non-commital. But the group does offer feedback and workshopping on members' manuscripts.

In past years, the group has aggregated their stories into an unpublished compendium that the library stores. It is available to all Monmouth County readers upon request.

"We've seen the group grow so much," said Manalapan librarian Judy Tolchin, citing that over the group's three year history the membership has picked up from just a couple of writers to over two dozen at some meetings.

The library will be hosting special speakers and panels for local writers this fall as well, when a six-author panel will discuss suspense-writing, and a writer from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart will come speak to writers.

For more info on literary leanings at the library, check out their events calendar.

The Manalapan Township Committee approved a day-long suspension of their Police Chief last night, amid a raucous crowd there to support and defend Chief Stuart Brown. The chief will appeal to the Superior Court to overturn the decision.

The Asbury Park Press's Alesha Williams Boyd reported:

Town hall was packed with emergency responders, township residents, and others from beyond the township, the bulk of whom said they were there to support Brown and implore the committee not to uphold the suspension. According to disciplinary hearing records, Roth testified that Brown referred to her as "Lady" and moved toward her in what she felt was an intimidating manner.

Residents praised Brown's service as a chief and accused committee members of forcing taxpayers to fund "political witch hunts" and "personal vendettas."

Read the whole story at APP.com

Brown is appealing the proposed suspension for alleged insubordination and has filed an age-discrimination lawsuit against the township, Committeewoman Michelle Roth and Administrator Tara Lovrich. A Superior Court judge said the committee would have to vote on the suspension before he’ll hear the appeal.

Township Clerk Rose Ann Weeden said the committee will discuss the matter in closed session. If the committee decides to take action (as in, vote to uphold the suspension) they’ll discuss it in public, Weeden said. She said it’s possible that, if the committee doesn’t have enough votes in favor of suspending the chief, they will not discuss it at the public meeting at all.

Mayor Richard Klauber, for one, said he’s in favor of the unpaid day.

“”I wasn’t there for the event and I wasn’t at the hearing, so…I’m basically going to defer to the hearing officer who heard all the facts and the information and found that a one-day suspension was warranted,’’ Klauber said.

Committeewoman Susan Cohen said she would vote against a resolution if one is put on the table.

"I’m hoping that the rest of the Township Committee will see fit to vote that way, too,'' Cohen said. "I think we’ve wasted enough time and we need to move on."

Committeeman Don Holland said he’s not discussing the matter until tonight. Committeewoman Roth and Committeeman Andrew Lucas were unavailable for comment.

Read more about this story here.

Should be an interesting meeting. See you tonight!

The township says Chief Stuart Brown used “disrespectful, mutinous, insolent and abusive language’’ toward then-mayor Michelle Roth in a 2008 incident,’’ among other complaints in court documents. Brown was given a one-day suspension by a third-party mediator from another town.

But Brown is appealing the decision in court. If the matter isn’t settled by Thursday, it is expected to go to trial.

Roth said the township has no plans to back down.

Drama!

Read more here. Details in Wednesday’s Asbury Park Press!

A habitual offender who has repeatedly made bail will not have a chance to commit more crimes against the public, after a state Superior Court judge today ordered he would remain held without bail.

Scott Bennett, 43, of Gravel Hill Road in Freehold Township, is charged with killing a man after failing to stop at a stop sign, along with various other recent offenses.
He is being held without bail after a state grand jury sitting in Monmouth County handed up an indictment on his latest charges - robbing the Raintree FoodTown in his hometown on April 15.
Store employees saw Bennett shoplifting two steaks and a sponge, by putting them into his pants, officials have said. When Bennett was arrested and charged with robbery, shoplifting, throwing bodily fluids on a police officer and resisting arrest, he was ordered held on $300,500 bail.

Defense attorney Edward C. Bertucio Jr., successfully argued for a bail reduction in June to $200,000 with no option to post 10 percent, and Bennett was freed after a bond was posted.
One of the conditions of Bennett's bail was to check in weekly with the court, and another was to avoid alcohol.
Just days after his release, Bennett showed up to check in with the court, but ended up back behind bars and his bail revoked after he was suspected of being intoxicated.
State Superior Court Judge Ira E. Kreizman today ordered Bennett will continue to be held without bail. Bennett is expected back in court on Sept. 21.

At the time of his arrest in April, Bennett was free on $600,000 bail on charges of vehicular homicide, aggravated manslaughter, eluding police, aggravated assault and other charges for an accident that occurred on Oct. 7, 2007.
In that case, Bennett is accused of driving a GMC Jimmy while unlicensed and intoxicated through a stop sign killing Timothy J. Flanagan, 41, of Edison, on his motorcycle.
The $600,000 bail was a reduction by Kreizman from $810,000.
Just three weeks before the aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide charges, Bennett made bail in Ocean County after he was charged with aggravated assault and resisting arrest in Manchester. Bail was set at $100,000, and Bennett was freed after a bond was posted.
In the vehicular homicide case, Bennett is accused of driving 75 mph in a 35 mph zone while being chased by a Manalapan police officer whose orders to pull over he ignored prior to running the stop sign that led to Flanagan's death.
At the intersection of Route 537 and Gravel Hill Road in Freehold Township, Bennett failed to come to a full stop at a stop sign, and Flanagan's motorcycle collided with Bennett's SUV. As Bennett fled the scene in the SUV, he allegedly ran over Flanagan, who was thrown from the motorcycle.
In the April robbery of the Raintree FoodTown, authorities went to the store and had to use force to take the 6-foot-2-inch, 245-pound, Bennett into custody.
Police did not use pepper spray because of the possibility of having customers in the store affected by the chemical irritant, and a maintenance man was injured in the confrontation.
As in the case that led to Flanagan's death, Bennett was intoxicated when he was arrested the RainTree FoodTown.

In December, Kreizman denied a motion by the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office to increase Bennett's $600,000 bail on the vehicular homicide charges because he had been arrested again. Bertucio asked Kreizman to allow Bennett to go into alcohol rehabilitation instead of granting the prosecutor's request.
At that time, Kreizman threatened to increase Bennett's bail to $1 million unless he entered an alcohol rehabilitation center. Bennett entered a rehab center and won a bail reduction at that time.
According to search of state criminal indictments on the Asbury Park Press' Data Universe Web site, Bennett has been indicted ten times on various charges dating back at least to 1997.

State Department of Corrections records show Bennett has spent an extended period of time in jail on no less than three occasions. He was last released from state prison on Aug. 2, 2006 after spending more than 2 years on the inside.

Sherry Lynn, a contemporary artist with roots in classic country, will showcase songs from her debut album, “It’s a Woman Thing.’’ Check Sherry Lynn out at sherrylynnmusic.com.

Manalapan Township’s Free Summer Concert Series will bring tunes to the community 7 p.m. Wednesdays in August at the recreation center. Bring lawn chairs and call (732) 446-8303 with questions.

Aug. 12: Teen Night features rock and roll artists Cosmic Cheeseburger, Jules’s Blues Blaster and pop rock artists DUNCE.

August 19: The Bronx Wanderers. Check them out at thebronxwanderers.com.

August 26th: Disco Rules with The Trammps – famous for their soundtrack from Saturday Night Fever. Check them out at aaeg.com/trammps.htm.

Manisero, 57, had served on the board since 2001, and during that time had

Anthony Manisero. Photo courtesy of the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional district Web site.

seen the construction of the district's John I. Dawes Early Learning Center, the Wemrock Brook School, and the extension of the Manalapan-Englishtown Middle School.

Manisero said he did not have the time necessary to dedicate to the board.

Manisero's term, which expires in 2010, is now vacant, and the school board is accepting applications for the position.

Those interested should submit a letter of interest and personal resume to Board Secretary Veronica Wolf, Manalapan-Englishtown Regional Board of Education, 54 Main St., Englishtown, by 4 p.m. July 17.

For more information, visit the district Web site or call the business office at (732) 786-2514.