With the retirement of Police Chief Craig Monahan and Deputy Chief Gene Sulzbach earlier this month, the Monroe police department made a number of promotions and welcomed four new officers.
They included Lt. Ryan Borkowski, who was sworn in as chief of police. At the promotional and swearing-in-ceremony, Borkowski introduced each officer.
Capt. John McBride was promoted to deputy chief of police.
“He takes the task of supervision very seriously,” Borkowski said. “He is one of the most organized guys … keeps me in check.”
McBride has been a member of the department for 26 years. He graduated with the 62nd session of the Atlantic County Police Academy in 1998. He served the patrol division and the tactical entry team, and was the department’s first drug recognition expert. His roles also included detective bureau investigator, federal task force officer with the Drug Enforcement Agency and field training officer.
Lt. Mark Burton was promoted to captain.
“Mark wears his traffic patch very well, he is one of the best traffic officers that we have and probably within the state,” Borkowski noted.
Burton began his law-enforcement career with the Monroe Police in 1998, after attending the Atlantic County Police Academy. He spent six-and-a-half years in the patrol division and was assigned to the traffic safety bureau in 2004. Ten years later, he was promoted to sergeant, with the responsibility to review fatal and serious injury crashes while securing traffic scenes. Burton helped obtain drunk driving grants from the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety and also worked as a work zone trainer and radar instructor for the police department. In May 2021, he was promoted to lieutenant and continued to supervise the traffic unit, vehicles and equipment. In 2010, he was nationally recognized as a traffic- crash reconstructionist and was certified as a state traffic control coordinator for work zone safety in 2014.
As captain, Burton will oversee the patrol division and traffic bureau, as well as police body- worn cameras, police towing, and safety plans for the department as patrol commander.
Sgt. Mike Gabbianelli was promoted to lieutenant.
“He is very involved in the police department, any task given he tackles …” Borkowski said, noting that Gabbianelli’s father is a retired lieutenant with the department.
Gabbianelli graduated from the Gloucester County Police Academy in 2003. He began his career in law enforcement with the Monroe department and spent his first 14 years there assigned to the patrol division. He was also assigned to the traffic safety bureau and since 2022, he has been part of the department’s community response unit, supervising eight School Resource Officers.
Throughout his career, Gabbianelli immersed himself in police department endeavors. He has served as a police explorer advisor since 2005 and a DARE LEAD instructor at Williamstown Middle School since 2009. He plays a crucial role in planning, organizing and running community events, including town watch, National Night Out and Cone with a Cop. He has spent the last 11 years as one of the operators of the department’s entry team.
Gabbianelli spent most of his career on the executive board with the fraternal order of police. He has been a member of the Gloucester County police awards committee since 2018 and continues to serve and oversee the traffic unit, School Resource Officers, and the Office of Emergency Management, vehicles and equipment.
Detective Sgt. Jules Maiorano was promoted to lieutenant.
“Jules is one of those guys, you can call him in the middle of the night and say, ‘Hey we have a serious investigation going on,'” Borkowski noted. “He’s going to get up and come in no matter what.”
Maiorano graduated from the Gloucester County Police Academy in 2001 and started his career the Gloucester County Sheriff’s Department in 2004 before moving to the Monroe department. He was assigned to the patrol division for approximately four years and was a member of the Monroe entry team for eight years. He was also a DARE instructor for St. Mary’s School and Williamstown Middle School.
Maiorano was assigned to the detective bureau major crimes unit in 2013. He was assigned as a county humane law-enforcement officer – better known as “pet detective.” He also conducts coach backgrounds and four years ago was promoted to detective sergeant overseeing the major crimes, special investigative and juvenile units.
Maiorano is also vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 25, is involved in community policing events such as Cone with a Cop and National Night Out.
As lieutenant, he will continue to oversee the Detective Bureau’s Major Crimes Unit.
Officer Anthony D’Amico was promoted to sergeant.
“I call Anthony superstar because his bio here says it all, [this] guy’s everywhere doing everything,” Borkowski said. “[With his] K9 Rocky, they were always out in community events.”
Prior to his career in law enforcement, D’Amico served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2004 to 2012. He was a combat veteran during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2008.
In 2010, he began his law enforcement career. He graduated from the New Jersey Department of Corrections Academy in Sea Girt. Shortly after graduating, he was hired by the Monroe Township Police Department and returned to the Gloucester County Police Academy in 2012. During his time in the patrol division, he served as a K-9 handler, field training officer, drug recognition expert, tactical medical instructor and has been a member of the honor guard detail and tactical entry team since 2022. In 2016, he was assigned with the K-9 unit and partnered with K-9 Rocky. They both attended the Philadelphia Police K-9 Academy and were certified in patrol and narcotics detection. During his time as a K-9 handler, D’Amico and K-9 Rocky were credited with conducting over 200 narcotic cases and seizure of various illegal drugs and over $20,000 in U.S. currency. K-9 Rocky retired after seven years. D’Amico has received numerous awards from the Gloucester County Police Committee including the distinguished Lifesaving with Battle Valor for rescuing a person from a house fire. In 2020, he was named the township’s Officer of the Year.
New officers include Dominick Stellaccio, Daniel Goneau, Justin Fyffe, and Thomas Scudder. All are Monroe Township residents and Williamstown High School graduates.
Stellaccio’s father is a retired detective lieutenant with the Monroe Township Police Department and his brother is a New Jersey State Trooper. He comes to the department with five years of experience with the Hamilton Township Police Department.
Goneau served as a Class 2 officer in Ocean City. Borkowski noted Goneau was out in a patrol car as a Class 2 officer during his first year, which is “pretty prestigious.”
Fyffe currently serves in the U.S. Marine Corps and holds the rank of sergeant. He comes to the department with five years of experience from the Glassboro Police Department.
Scudder comes to the department with one year of experience from the Camden County Metro Police Department.
The promoted officers also includes Nick Iacovone, who was promoted to sergeant.
