Law enforcement officials say they're holding two Bergen County brothers who are accused of threatening to hurt a woman who accuses a third brother of a sex crime.
The two just taken into custody are 25 years old and 26 years old; both of the Guatemala natives were charged with witness tampering and were being held in Bergen County Jail in lieu of $15,000 bail.
Immigration authorities have filed detainers against the two brothers who live in Cliffside Park. The detainers could apparently result in deportations for the pair.
Fairview's police chief said investigators on his department recently learned that a girl, 15, was assaulted by the third brother. He was arrested on March 12.
The 23-year-old is accused of forcing his way into the girl's home, threatening her with a glass shard and knocking over a younger sibling.
That brother's in the county jail in lieu of $150,000 bail, facing charges of aggravated sexual assault, hindering apprehension and burglary.
A police spokesperson claimed his brothers "were making contact with the juvenile victim and her family, pressuring them to drop the charges."
According to media reports at the time of the alleged assault, the brother
and the teen had previously had consensual sex.
After the alleged assault, he was charged with additional counts of making
terroristic threats as well as the previously mentioned charges.
The three brothers all face serious criminal charges. In similar situations,
defendants decline to discuss the accusations with prosecutors until after
they've discussed their cases with experienced criminal defense attorneys.
Source: Cliffview Pilot, "Cliffside Park brothers charged with threatening sex-crime victim not to testify,"May 22, 2012