Paramus Hires 10 Officers to Start 2021 – TAPinto.net

PARAMUS, NJ – The borough hired 10 police officers at its final meeting of 2020.

The following officers were officially approved by a 4-3 vote at the Dec. 28 council meeting at a starting salary of $45,048. The following biographies were issued by Chief of Police Kenneth Ehrenberg.

Jamie Takahashi was born in New York City and is a long time resident of Paramus. Jamie graduated from Paramus High School, and then went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University in economics. Shortly after graduating from college, Jamie was commissioned into the New York Army National Guard as a Transportation Officer. Jamie is presently a 1st Lieutenant and assigned as the Executive Officer for the 719th Composite Truck Company. In 2017, Jamie joined the Paramus Volunteer Fire Department and became a Special 1 Police Officer with the Borough of Paramus.  Jamie then attended and graduated from the Morris County Police Academy in 2018. Jamie speaks both Korean and Japanese.

Keith Sampson was raised in Jersey City and graduated from Liberty High School. Keith then went on to attend New Jersey City University and is currently continuing his studies at Thomas Edison State University.

Keith began his career in Law Enforcement as a Corrections Officer with the New Jersey Department of Corrections and was assigned to the New Jersey State Prison located in Trenton. In 2016, Keith graduated from the Passaic County Police Academy and joined the Jersey City Police Department – West District. After over two years of Patrol experience, Keith joined the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office as a detective and was assigned to the Gang Intelligence Unit. Keith is the proud father of a nine-year-old daughter and a five-month-old son and continuously progresses his career to be an example to his children. 

Michael Cleary is a lifelong resident of Paramus and graduated from Paramus High School. Michael then joined the United States Marine Corps where he earned the rank of Corporal/E-4. Michael was Honorably Discharged then attended San Diego State University where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree with Summa Cum Laude honors. Michael then went on to attend the Bergen County Police Academy where he was the Class Commanding Officer. Prior to coming to the Paramus Police Department, Michael was a Police Officer with the Mahwah Police Department for two years.

Clario K. Sampson was born in Guyana, South America, and then moved to the City of Orange. He then moved to the City of Newark and continued his high school education in Orange. Sampson then continued his education at Montclair State University where he played football and earned a bachelor’s degree. Clario began his law enforcement career in the city of Newark where he attended and graduated from the New Jersey State Police Municipal Academy for the City of Newark.  Clario received many accolades while working with the city of Newark and is looking forward to serving the Borough of Paramus.

Kevin Osback was raised in Fair Lawn. He graduated Fair Lawn High School in 2013 as a 3-sport varsity athlete in football, lacrosse, track (captain of all three). He received a bachelor’s of communication public relations and a minor in criminal justice at Monmouth University where Kevin also played Division 1 Lacrosse for all four years.

Kevin completed the Morris County Police Academy in 2019 and became a police officer with Roxbury Township from 2019-2020.

Cesar Hurtado was born in Peru and came to the United States at the age of 2; he was raised in Fort Lee and graduated Fort Lee High School in 2012. Cesar attended Bergen Community College where he earned an associate’s degree in criminal justice. Cesar then continued his college education at Rutgers University – New Brunswick where he earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. Cesar was then accepted into the Passaic County Police Academy Alternate Route Program.  Upon graduation from the Academy, Cesar began his career with the Pequannock Township Police Department in April 2017 where he was an officer for approximately 3 ½ years before transferring to the Paramus Police Department. Cesar also speaks Spanish.

Jason Hrbek was born in Westwood. He attended Westwood Regional High School and after that, West Chester University of Pennsylvania and graduated with a degree in criminal justice. Jason attended Essex County College Public Safety Academy. Prior to becoming a Paramus Police Officer, Jason was a dispatcher at the Paramus Police Department since 2012 and became a supervisory dispatcher in 2016.

Vincent LaBarbiera is a lifelong resident of Paramus and graduated from Paramus High School. Vincent continued his studies at William Paterson University and Fairleigh Dickinson University.  Vincent was a lifeguard at the Paramus Pool.  Vincent is a current member of Paramus Fire Company 3 where he is a Hazardous Materials Technician holding the rank of lieutenant of the Hazardous Materials Company. He became a Paramus Police Department Class 1 Special Officer in 2016.  In 2018, he was hired by the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office as a sheriff’s investigator. He is a graduate of the Morris County Police Academy.  

Sean Casey is a lifelong resident of Paramus. He graduated Paramus High School in 2010 where he was a varsity baseball player. Sean graduated Montclair State University with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. Sean joined the Paramus Volunteer Fire Department in 2011 and is a current member. Sean attended the Essex County Police Academy in 2018 through the Alternate Route Program. Prior to becoming a Paramus Police Officer, Sean was a dispatcher for the Borough of Paramus since 2014 and became a supervisory dispatcher in 2016.

Slavko Bajovic was born in Montenegro and then moved to Cliffside Park where he graduated from Cliffside Park High School.  He continued his studies at Montclair State University, then Rutgers State University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. Slavko then began his law enforcement career as a Class 1 Special Police Officer for Cliffside Park Police Department. He then became a Class 2 Police Officer for the Hackensack Police Department.  Slavko was then hired as a Police Officer for the New Jersey Institute of Technology Police Department. Slavko can communicate in several languages.