Murder for Hire Plot Hatched in Mahwah, Fallen Teaneck Police Officer Honored

Welcome to "Around The County," a weekly column that highlights stories throughout Bergen County. This week, a Lyndhurst woman allegedly made arrangements with a man she thought was a hitman in Mahwah to kill her ex-boyfriend's new girlfriend, the Teaneck community remembered a fallen police officer and renamed the driveway to police headquarters in his honor, a Ridgewood business owner is organizing a clothing drive to help those affected by the earthquake in Turkey, officials are promising New Milford residents they're working on flooding problems, Washington Township emergency personnel packed council chambers to raise concerns about using county dispatch, Snooki visited Bookends in Ridgewood and more. Check out our list of some of the top stories in the county this week:

• A Lyndhurst woman made arrangements with a "hitman" in a Mahwah supermarket parking lot , US Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced in a release Thursday.
  
  
• The driveway to Teaneck police headquarters was renamed Tuesday in honor of Teaneck Police Officer John Abraham Jr., who died in the line of duty one year ago when his patrol car struck a utility pole. outside the police station, a short distance from the crash site.
  
  
• Hundreds are dead, thousands injured and even more left homeless after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake ripped through the Van Province of southeast Turkey on Sunday. One ex-pat and Ridgewood business owner is .
  
  
• The Paramus Mayor and Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday was canceled after . The mayor called it "a shutdown of government."
  
  
• Members of the Washington Township emergency services and residents packed the council chambers Wednesday night for the special council meeting called to discuss applying for grant money that could be used to fund shared dispatch service with the county. before making a decision.
  
  
• A from a Wyckoff garage, a week after police levied similar charges her, authorities said Wednesday.
  
  
• Fair Lawn Police now say that Edward Proctor, the man who was arrested Friday for allegedly casing borough schools looking for items to steal, may have snatched something after all. Sgt. Richard Schultz said Wednesday that after an investigation by the Fair Lawn Police Department's Detective Bureau, .
  
  
• Borough officials are working to ensure New Milford residents won't continue to suffer from floods after every major storm, Mayor Ann Subrizi said at the mayor and council meeting Monday night. After a delayed start due to an extended closed session, Subrizi : Lowering the water level in the reservoirs prior to a storm, dredging the Hackensack River and raising the PSE&G substation.
  
  
• The long list of issues Hasbrouck Heights has with the state Department of Transportation, such as unresolved maintenance problems and unattended traffic safety issues, have now been placed in the hands of the governor’s office. Mayor Rose Heck reported Tuesday night on her recent meeting with Rich Bagger, Governor Chris Christie’s chief of staff. Bagger is now which she brought to his attention.
  
  
• The Fort Lee Board of Education Thursday approved a five-year lease agreement for central office space at 2175 Lemoine Ave. at a special public work session. The lease agreement with Morgan New Jersey Holdings LLC will —a resolution relating to which was approved at a previous BOE regular business meeting.
  
  
• Colin Knight has been involved with scouting since 2001 and has achieved the prestigious honor of Eagle Scout status with Franklin Lakes’ Troop 34. Now the 16-year-old Indian Hills High School junior is hoping to take his love of scouting a step further by .
  
  
• Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi of "Jersey Shore" fame came to Bookends in Ridgewood on Wednesday to .
  
  
• The River Dell volleyball team for the second year in a row.
  
  
• An NJ Transit train on the Pascack Valley line hit a car at the Main Street crossing in North Hackensack Wednesday. No injuries were reported and officials said it appeared the motorist had driven around the railroad gates.
  
  
• A state health study concluded that cancer rates in a Garfield neighborhood that is a Superfund site were not higher than other areas, but officials said the study may have been completed prematurely because some cancers can take decades to show up.
  
  
• A health fund for municipal workers in Bergen County has sued drug manufacturer Wyeth, Inc., claiming it kept generic brands of an anti-depressant off the market for two years so the company could charge more for the medication.
  
  
• Police in Garfield said callers from Puerto Rico claiming to have relatives and demanding ransom have been trying to get money from residents. They allegedly got $160 from one woman.