Nicholas M. Scarano

By Cecilia Levine From Daily Voice

A Montclair man was charged after allegedly hacking into a Fort Lee condominium’s communication system and sending hundreds of residents threatening, bias-filled emails, authorities said.

Nicholas M. Scarano, 23, of Montclair, was arrested on Friday, Aug. 15, one day after the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Cyber Crimes Unit was notified of a mass email containing bias and threatening language, Prosecutor Mark Musella said Saturday.

The email had been sent to 411 residents at the Atrium Palace condominium complex during the overnight hours, Musella said. Detectives found that two messages, “each containing explicit language targeting Jewish and African American people,” were sent by an unknown user who unlawfully accessed the building’s online management and communication system.

Detectives traced the online activity to an internet connection belonging to Scarano in Montclair, according to Musella. A court-authorized search warrant was executed at his home on Aug. 15, and investigators determined that Scarano used two devices to access the system and send the threatening messages, authorities said.

It was not immediately clear why Scarano targeted that specific building. Scarano's LinkedIn profile shows his last job was a Campus Security Supervisor from May 2024 to February 2025.

Scarano was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack, prosecutors said.

He was charged with second-degree bias intimidation, third-degree terroristic threats, third-degree false public alarm, and third-degree computer criminal activity.

Prosecutor Musella noted that “the charges are merely accusations, and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.” He thanked the Fort Lee Police Department, Montclair Police Department, Millburn Police Department, Paramus Police Department, Washington Township Police Department, and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office for their assistance.