January 06, 2016
It was anything but small town politics as usual after Tuesday night's Bloomfield, N.J. City Council meeting.
Several family members of Elias Chalet, the Bloomfield City Councilman who remains under investigation for allegedly accepting a $15,000 bribe, were involved in a parking lot altercation with Councilman Joseph Lopez, one of many council and community members who have called for Chalet's resignation.
A police report obtained by PolitickerNJ indicates that four relatives of Chalet – Daniel, Rami, Christopher, and George – approached Lopez, his wife and his elderly father as they sat in his car in the parking lot behind the Bloomfield Police headquarters.
Though it is unclear what their intentions were in approaching Lopez, Daniel Chalet carried his cell phone with him and recorded the beginning of the incident, seen in the video below, before Lopez engaged with him and the phone fell to the ground.
Lopez, who ultimately called 911, told PolitickerNJ that he could see the family members approaching with the camera. When it appeared they would attempt to open the door, Lopez says he pushed it out and asked them what they were doing surrounding him. He claims any actions that followed were in self-defense.
The police report also indicates that Daniel Chalet was interviewed by investigators later that night at Mountainside Hospital. Chalet claims he was simply returning to his car, which happened to be parked near Lopez' vehicle, and he recorded the incident so as not be accused of anything. He says Lopez kicked the car door out at him and punched him twice in the face, causing his phone to fall and shatter the screen in several places.
Chalet insists he never intended to start an altercation with Lopez and that he plans to file charges. Lopez counters that Chalet's story is bogus in part because the alleged assault was not filed with police until several hours after the incident.
Elias Chalet, who was present at the meeting but not during the altercation, sat through a heated debate about his status on the council and said only that he plans to continue attending meetings. He was arrested in November for allegedly accepting a bribe after telling a local businessman that he would use his influence to sway Springfield Township's purchase of the man's commercial property. The case is under investigation by the New Jersey Office of the U.S. Attorney General.
