PARSIPPANY — The Parsippany-Troy Hills Public Library System will no longer charge overdue fines for items owned by Parsippany Libraries returned past their due date.  In addition, all previously existing fines for the Main Library and/or Branch Libraries of items returned overdue will be waived.

Parsippany-Troy Hills Public Library is proud to join the hundreds of libraries nationwide that are ensuring free and open access to library materials by going fine-free.

Parsippany is the third Library in Morris County to enact this policy.

Fines have been proven to discourage and decrease library use, and disproportionately affect low-income and minority communities. Libraries that have eliminated fines have seen library usage and material return rates increase.

Books, DVDs, and audiobooks owned by Parsippany libraries will no longer accrue fines if returned late. All previous overdue fines on Parsippany Library materials will be forgiven, so any customer who has overdue items at home can return those materials to the library, and all accumulated late fees or book replacement costs will be waived.

They encourage all Parsippany residents to use the library, and we are excited to welcome back the members of our community who have been unable to access library resources in the past due to overdue fines. For more information click here.

*Please note that this only applies to items owned by the Parsippany-Troy Hills Public Library System. Items belonging to other libraries may still accrue fines.

PARSIPPANY — 99 Everett Road is a single-family home and has four bedrooms and three bathrooms. This property has a lot size of 7,841 square feet. It was listed by Andrea Martone, Realty Executives Platinum. It was sold on March 1 for $805,000.

Other Parsippany homes sold:

PARSIPPANY — If you are a true Korean food aficionado seeking out that exceptional Korean BBQ restaurant, you might want to take the 30–40-mile trip to Bergen County or NYC, where you will find some outstanding venues. Luckily, if you reside in the general Parsippany area, do yourself a favor and skip the trip, and the gas, as Keo Ku BBQ Restaurant, located in a small strip mall on Route 46 East, provides comparable dining and cultural adventure to those more renown locations.

Keo Ku BBQ, the first Korean restaurant in Parsippany opened its doors in 1993, owned and operated by the same family for the past 29 years. Current General Manager/Part Owner Brian Kim told me that his father, Jin Kim, and two Uncles, Seung Min and Mun are the initial owners of the restaurant, and now he has joined them to continue this great family business.

On further inquiry, the extremely personable and humble Brian K. explained, “My purpose is to bring authentic Korean food to our guests, offering true, traditional, high quality, fresh, and wholesome food while trying to avoid fusion dishes, which are common in many places. Of course, we offer several creative new dishes to accommodate all our customer’s tastes.” From my point of view, he could not have done a better job of meeting his goals.

The entire dinner, from our tantalizing appetizers, assorted banchan, sumptuous entrees, and a highly creative dessert, provided our entire foodie group with an exciting dining adventure. Our highly attentive and genial host, Brian K., took time from his busy day to patiently answer all our questions, explain each serving, and provide helpful recommendations on request. As well as being an exceptional meal, it proved to be an interesting and cultural educational experience enjoyed by everyone.

Keo Ku BBQ is situated on the side of a small strip mall off Route 46 East, just West of New Road. One must watch the easily visible, large red signage leading into the strip mall.

Once entering the attractive entrance, you are immediately impressed with the classy, casual, welcoming, and warm Asian atmosphere throughout the restaurant. It is immaculately clean and spacious, with beautifully arranged seating, decorative wooden partitions separating the rich-looking wooden tables, appointed with traditional Korean eating utensils called Sujeo (수저) (metal chopsticks and long-handled spoon). Unlike other Asian cultures, Koreans use metal chopsticks with squared ends, as opposed to the wooden ones we in the U.S. are familiar with. The interior is softly and comfortably lighted, with soothing-colored walls, furniture, floors, and adornments, perfectly complementing the thoughtfully laid out Korean décor and artifacts throughout the restaurant. You will even find a Koi Pond at the entrance to further enhance the cultural ambiance, along with an interior design reflective of an ethnic, traditional Korean atmosphere. A fun and friendly vibe permeate the entire dining area.

My group of six was comfortably seated in a rear section of the restaurant, set up with nice, large tables, with gas grills in the center of each table with an unobtrusive smoke vent overhead. Each table could easily accommodate 8 to 10 people.

As we perused and discussed the menu, deciding on our appetizers and entrees, we ordered some Terra and Kloud Malt beer (Korean Beers are usually light lagers) while discussing Korean food, culture, etiquette, and history with our knowledgeable host. Eventually, for our shared appetizers we decided on Panjeon 파전 (Scallion and Kimchi Pancakes), Soy Garlic and Spicy Goghujang (spicy red pepper paste) Chicken Wings, Scrambled Egg Korean Style (Gyeranjjim), and Japchae (Sweet Potato Glass Noodles Stir-Fried with Vegetables). The diversity of the tastes, textures, presentation, and aroma of the tangy, salty, sweet, spicy, and flavorful assortment of dishes was mouth-watering and were a tantalizing prelude to what was still to come. It was interesting and exciting to indulge in this satisfying and pleasurable dining experience.

Next out was the Banchan. Traditional Korean meals boast abundant side dishes, called Banchan, a term referring collectively to side dishes in Korean cuisine. Banchan accompanies every meal in Korea and can change daily based on the season, or on the meat or noodle dish you order.

As is tradition, our table was quickly presented with a generous assortment of those side dishes, which included Kimchi (김치), cabbage fermented in a brine of ginger, garlic, green onion, and chili pepper, and Korea’s National dish and served at nearly every Korean meal, assorted vegetables, pickled selections, seafood, bean sprouts, noodles, tofu, rice, dipping sauces and more, that are all part of banchan. Remember, banchan are not an appetizer, but small assorted dishes to complement the main meal.

While we were enjoying the apps and banchan, as well as the camaraderie of sharing this communal meal, our pleasant and accommodating server, Meerah Lee, began to oil and prepare the gas grill, located in the center of each table, for the continuing feast to come.

Meerah expertly prepared the Bulgogi, and accompanying vegetables (불고기). Bulgogi is thinly sliced lean and tender beef, marinated in soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sugar, green onions, and black pepper. Next came the Galbi (갈비), grilled beef short ribs, sliced a little thicker than bulgogi. Both meat selections were nicely marbled and were, tasty, juicy, tender, and melt-in-your-mouth savory. The balanced sweet and savory marinade enhanced each bite. As traditionally eaten, I wrapped the marinated meat, along with the gochugaru paste, in one of the large, fresh, crispy, lettuce leaves provided with the meal, and proceeded to eat them in one bite: Korean style. The crunchiness and toothsome texture of the lettuce, with the spicy bite of gochugaru, along with the umami savoriness of the marinated meat was delectable.

I should note that you can order and grill your own entrees if you prefer instead of allowing the Keo Ku staff to do it. I was informed that is the preference of some guests. As for our group, we were more than happy to let Meerah do her thing, and she did it well.

Not wanting to miss another popular Korean dish we ordered the Gopdol Bibimbap (비빔밥), mixed vegetables, ground beef, fried egg over crispy rice, and served in a hot stove bowl, and served with a dollop of chili pepper paste. Crunchy and luscious, spicy, and sweet, with pickled and fermented notes, delicious addition to the meal.

Despite being more than satiated, we could not pass on a special dessert prepared by our host and guide, Brian Kim. Koreans are particularly fond of chips, according to Mr. Kim, so with a little creativity came his Honey Buttered Chip Dessert, which went amazingly well when dipped into vanilla ice cream. Perfect ending to a perfect meal.

Korean food is not only delicious and full of flavor but also embedded in thousands of years of culture. Looking for your next dining adventure? Looking for an educational dining experience? Go no further than Keo Ku BBQ Restaurant.

Dine-in – Take-Out – Curbside Pickup – Reservations Accepted – Vegan Options

Private Parking Lot – Free Wi-Fi – Full Bar – Closed Mondays

Also on the Menu: Jeongols (Hot Pots) & Tang-Jjigae (Sours & Stews)

Keo Ku BBQ also offers catering and can accommodate private parties in their Hak (Crane) Room, a private dining room that can seat up to thirty-two people.

The Keo Ku Corner Bar is a bright open space that can accommodate up to forty seats and fifty-plus people for standing room.

Keo Ku Korean BBQ Restaurant (Keo Ku Jang) is located at 245 Route 46 East, Parsippany-Troy Hills. (973) 244-0032. Menu: KoreanbbqNewJersey.com.

PARSIPPANY — The Department of Justice announced criminal charges against 21 defendants in nine federal districts across the United States for their alleged participation in various healthcare-related fraud schemes that exploited the COVID-19 pandemic. These cases allegedly resulted in over $149 million in COVID-19-related false billings to federal programs and theft from federally-funded pandemic assistance programs. In connection with the enforcement action, the department seized over $8 million in cash and other fraud proceeds.

“The Department of Justice’s Health Care Fraud Unit and our partners are dedicated to rooting out schemes that have exploited the pandemic,” Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said.

“Billions of dollars have been spent by the federal government to help individuals and their companies with the economic impact of the COVID-19 epidemic,” U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger, District of New Jersey, said. “Unfortunately, unscrupulous people have stolen millions of dollars through a variety of schemes. We will continue to bring cases to fight this kind of fraud.”

“This COVID-19 health care fraud enforcement action involves extraordinary efforts to prosecute some of the largest and most wide-ranging pandemic frauds detected to date,” Director for COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Kevin Chambers said.

April 20, 2022, the announcement builds on the success of the May 2021 COVID-19 Enforcement Action and involves the prosecution of various COVID-19 health care fraud schemes.

Abid Syed, Taquir Din, Tamer Mohamed, Abdul Rauf, Tauquir Khan, and Nisim Davydov, all of New Jersey, are charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to violate the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute for their roles in an alleged scheme to defraud Medicare by paying illegal kickbacks and bribes of over $250,000 for laboratory tests for COVID-19 pathogen tests. Syed and Din owned and controlled Metpath, a clinical laboratory in Parsippany, which performed and billed Medicare for COVID-19 diagnostic testing. Khan, Mohamed, and Davydov were marketers who supplied thousands of COVID-19 diagnostic tests to Metpath and who received kickbacks and bribes from Syed and Din for doing so.

Metpath is located at 322 Route 46. Click here to download the complaint.

The complaint alleges that Metpath tried to conceal its kickback payments to the marketers through shell companies set up and controlled by Rauf.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney DeNae Thomas of the Health Care Fraud Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.

The enforcement actions were led and coordinated by Assistant Chief Jacob Foster and Trial Attorney D. Keith Clouser of the National Rapid Response Strike Force, and Assistant Chief Justin Woodard of the Health Care Fraud Unit’s Gulf Coast Strike Force in the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The Fraud Section’s National Rapid Response Strike Force and the Health Care Fraud Unit’s Strike Forces (SF) in Brooklyn, the Gulf Coast, Miami, Los Angeles, and Newark, as well as the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Maryland, District of New Jersey, District of Utah, Northern District of California, and Western District of Tennessee are prosecuting these cases.

In addition to the FBI, HHS-OIG, and CPI/CMS, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Department of Defense Office of Inspector General; Department of the Interior Office of the Inspector General; Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General; Food and Drug Administration Office of the Inspector General; Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of the Inspector General; and other federal and local law enforcement agencies participated in the law enforcement action.

The Fraud Section leads the Health Care Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Health Care Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 federal districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion. In addition, the CMS, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across the government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.

The Department of Justice needs the public’s assistance in remaining vigilant and reporting suspected fraudulent activity. To report suspected fraud, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) at (866) 720-5721 or file an online complaint by clicking here. Complaints filed will be reviewed at the NCDF and referred to federal, state, local, or international law enforcement or regulatory agencies for investigation.

An indictment, complaint, or information is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.