A city native who now fights crime, drugs and addiction in northern Nevada has been nominated to be an "America's Most Wanted" All-Star.

Sgt. Jason Dias, 31, an officer with the Storey County Sheriff's Department, trains other officers in drug awareness, works with convicted drug abusers to help them fight their addictions and, in December, seized 15 pounds of Marijuana after a routine traffic stop.

"America's Most Wanted," a national TV show in which viewers help solve real-life major crimes, is holding an All-Star sweepstakes to find a first responder who has made exceptional contributions to the community, exemplifying All-Star qualities. The winner receives $10,000, an all-expenses-paid trip for two to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series All-Star Challenge in Charlotte, N.C., in May and an "America's Most Wanted" varsity jacket.

"I'm very honored to be nominated," Dias said from his family home in Virginia City, Nev. "I'm pleased and happy to fight the good fight."

And if he wins, Dias said, he'll use the victory to highlight the dangers of crystal Methamphetamine and advocate for more use of drug court, an alternative court system model that integrates rehabilitation, escalating penalties and mandatory drug tests to help non-violent drug addicts get off drugs and stop committing crime.

"Methamphetamine has not hit the East Coast as hard as it has here," Dias said. "It's such an addictive drug. I work with families, and sometimes there's multi-generational addiction."

Some mothers, Dias said, even name their daughters "Crystal," in homage to their drug of choice.

Voters can cast their ballots for the 19 All-Star nominees online beginning Monday. The nominees are from all over the country including Jersey City and Lyndhurst.

Dias, who as a child played in Mount Prospect Park and wolfed down pizza at Mario's on Van Houten Avenue, moved to northern Nevada in 1998 to train as a professional snowboarder.

"Every time I go back, I get a little homesick," Dias said of North Jersey. "All my family is still there. My grandma is still in Paterson."

But Dias was always interested in law enforcement, and the following year, he graduated from the police academy.

Clifton resident Karen Greco, 30, who has known Dias for the last 10 years, said she wasn't at all surprised that he had been nominated as an All-Star, because he has the interest of the community close to his heart.

"He's just an all-around great guy," she said. "He's someone you want looking out for you."

Dias said he was taken aback when producers from "America's Most Wanted" contacted him about his nomination late last year. The producers told Dias that a member of the community contacted them to nominate him.

"That really blew me away," said his wife, Maria, who attended Clifton High School with Dias. "He comes home with a lot of stories about the people he helped, [but] for somebody to actually go and do that it really makes it feel like it's all worthwhile."