With an arraignment scheduled for today and more and more reports of a spy swap happening, possibly by end of day, the mystery behind the Murphys, Montclair’s alleged Russian spies, continues. This New York Times editor writes of almost moving in next door to the Murphys (ultimately he deviated from the Times norm and bought a house in a nearby town, dodging a tax bullet of $12,815).
The house was a contender, but something just wasn’t quite right. Had Mr. Bulik bought next door, he and his family would have set up housekeeping in the home vacated by another family (the Shiffmans, according to real estate documents) who bought the house at 29 Marquette (pictured on right) in June 2008 shortly before the Murphys moved in (the Murphys closed on 31 Marquette, pictured left, in August 2008). The two families, both with young children, became friends. Now neighbors are speculating how much the Shiffmans knew about the Murphys and whether the family was cozying up to the alleged spy couple to assist the FBI. In early June, 29 Marquette was sold (listed for $549,000; sold for $552,066, 17 days on the market) just weeks before the FBI arrested the Murphys. Neighbors say the Shiffmans relocated to Canada; unlike these former neighbors, the family have not told their story.
Both houses were quiet yesterday when I went to look at the famed hydrangeas, proof for one teenage neighbor that Cynthia Murphy couldn’t possibly be a spy.
Everyone seized on Jessica Gugig’s quote and the
hydrangea references blossomed as bloggers took the teen’s words and planted them like seeds all over cyberspace. After all this, I had to see these hydrangeas. Sadly, there was just one lonely shrub at the side of the property. In the heat, it looked tired, limp and quite ordinary, ready to pack it in until next year.
Meanwhile, the New York Observer weighs in with some Montclair inside baseball for spies in training.
Sorry, I dozed off waiting for the page to load. Perhaps the Barista server is in danger of overheating?
What town did Bulik actually move to? What did he pay, and what are his current taxes? Inquiring minds want to know!
Has anyone heard what will become of the “Murphy” children? Will they be deported back to the fatherland, too? One can only imagine what these kids are thinking. “Oh, the places you’ll go.” And the shrinks you’ll need. Sad. Really sad.
Her hydrangeas look a lot better than mine.
Sorry, I dozed off waiting for this article to have any news whatsoever.
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I forgot what I was going to write
I have had a change of heart. I think that the children, should go with the parents. I know, they were born here and all that – but for the sanity of the children, they should be allowed to return to Russia ~ it would be cruel to seperate them from their parents.
I had, weeks ago, stated on here (somewhere…) that they should be adopted by an American family of Russian background, But I take that back.
The children did no crime, they were and are, just young children.
Last I heard is that Russia is setting up a swap, but the sticking point is that they want LeBron James thrown in, too.
I can’t a imagine a decision more tormenting than having to separate children from their parents. Did the Muphys’ lie to their own children, and does bringing them up in a lie constitute the abuse necessary to justify such a move?
For the sake of humanity, one has to at least hope that the Murphys want to be with their children, but they have shown a desire to deceive that doesn’t come naturally to most decent people.
On a less anguishing note; what will become of the house and from whom does the town expect to collect the property taxes on it?
Everybody lies to their children, Walter. Just to take the most common examples:
I love my job.
I never knowingly ingested psilocyban mushrooms.
I did not have sexual relations with that woman.