🔴 Bus company owner accused of dodging nearly $300K in tolls.🔴 State prosecutors say she racked up over 7,000 unpaid tolls since 2020.🔴 The owner has a history of legal trouble, including past violations and a police altercation.
BAYONNE — A New Jersey bus company owner is accused of dodging nearly $300,000 in tolls while making trips to the Big Apple.
Somaya Elkaramany, 57, was indicted on one count of second-degree theft of services and four counts of third-degree theft of services, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Officials say her bus company, Best Big Bus, is also facing three counts of the same theft offenses. She also drove the buses
It’s at least the third time Elkaramany has been accused of violating the law behind the wheel of a bus.
Thousands of unpaid tolls between New Jersey and New York
This time, the OAG says she dodged $290,000 in tolls while driving between Hudson County and New York City over the past five years.
Her massive toll tab from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police is a result of more than 7,000 violations since Oct. 1, 2020, officials say.
“The tolls we all pay go to maintain the vital bridges, tunnels, and roads that our state depends on. We will not tolerate anyone who tries to cheat the system,” Attorney General Matt Platkin said.
A 2017 booking photo of Somaya Elkaramany. At the time, she was cited for 383 violations (Port Authority police)
A 2017 booking photo of Somaya Elkaramany. At the time, she was cited for 383 violations (Port Authority police)A history of toll and traffic violations
Elkaramany has been on the Port Authority police’s radar for years. In 2017, she was cited for 383 violations.
Police said she drove her 2001 Ford bus through the Lincoln Tunnel without paying tolls and owed $24,522.
And in 2014, three years earlier, Elkaramany was accused of assaulting a Jersey City police officer during a traffic stop.
Past run-in with police in Jersey City
At the time, police said her jitney was parked in a zone marked for no stopping. She was given eight tickets.
She denied hitting the cop, who she said was harassing bus drivers in the city.
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