March 22, 2023
WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ (MONMOUTH)–At 9:15 p.m. Monmouth University is on a “Shelter In Place” for students as police search for an armed subject reported on campus. A large police presence is on scene including several local police departments and Federal agencies such as the FBI.
Further details will be posted as information becomes available.
Photos by: Ryan Mack, Jersey Shore Fire Response
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that on March 22, 2023, Harry Bray, 35, of Manchester, was indicted by a Grand Jury sitting in Ocean County on the charges of Attempted Murder, Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose, and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, in connection with an incident that occurred in Brick Township during the evening hours of January 5, 2023, resulting in serious bodily injuries to a female victim.
On January 5, 2023, at approximately 5:30 p.m., an Officer from the Brick Township Police Department was conducting a routine area check off of Cherry Quay Road when the Officer observed a vehicle with two flat tires in a parking lot area. Upon further examination, the Officer found a female victim on the ground near the vehicle suffering from multiple stab wounds. The victim was transported to a local area hospital; although she was initially treated for her injuries and released, complications from her injuries have resulted in the victim being readmitted to the hospital. An investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Brick Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, determined that Bray was responsible for the victim’s injuries.
Later in the evening on January 5, 2023, Bray was taken into custody, without incident, in Manchester Township by Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit and Brick Township Police Department. Bray was thereafter transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he has been lodged since his apprehension.
Prosecutor Billhimer acknowledges the diligent efforts of Senior Assistant Prosecutor Ashley Angelo who presented the case to the Grand Jury on behalf of the State, and commends the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit, Brick Township Police Department, Manchester Township Police Department, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, for their collaborative assistance in connection with this investigation leading to Bray’s swift apprehension and now his indictment.
The charges referenced above are merely accusations and the press and public are reminded that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
R.P.C. 3.6(b)(6).
March 22, 2023
TRENTON, N.J. – An Ocean County, New Jersey, man today admitted possessing and distributing images of child sexual abuse and inducing a minor to send him sexually explicit images and engage in sexually explicit conduct over an online messaging service, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.
Kevin Van Pelt, 33, of Lakehurst, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner to an information charging him with one count each of online enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual conduct, distribution of child pornography, and possession of prepubescent child pornography.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From August 2018 to October 2018, Van Pelt used multiple online messaging services to communicate with a minor victim, including repeatedly requesting that the minor send him sexually explicit images. Van Pelt also distributed images and videos of child sexual abuse over several online social media applications between December 2017 and March 2019. Van Pelt possessed images and videos of prepubescent child sexual abuse on his cellular phone when he was arrested by local authorities on May 1, 2019.
The charge of online enticement carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of life in prison, and a $250,000 fine. The charge of distribution of child pornography carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine. The charge of possession of prepubescent child pornography carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for July 20, 2023.
U.S. Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark; and members of the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Christine Hoffman, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian D. Brater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton.
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Defense counsel: Teri Lodge Esq., Marlton, New Jersey
Kevin Van Pelt, 33, of Lakehurst, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner to an information charging him with one count each of online enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual conduct, distribution of child pornography, and possession of prepubescent child pornography.
March 22, 2023
TINTON FALLS, NJ (MONMOUTH)–Yesterday March 21, 2023, around 4:11 p.m., 9-1-1 operators received a call from a homeowner stating that her house was on fire and fire departments were dispatched. When police arrived, they found a home “fully involved” First arriving firefighters stretched three hose lines, advanced two inside and one to the rear of the structure. From photos and video, it appeared that the fire involved the rear of the structure and spread up the rear of the building to the roof. Once the second floor of the structure was compromised the interior firefighters were evacuated from the structure and firefighters switched to defensive operations. The Monmouth County Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating. Firefighters operated for about two hours at the scene before clearing. No additional details are available at this time.
Photos and video by: Ryan Mack, Jersey Shore Fire Response
March 22, 2023
BARNEGAT TOWNSHIP, NJ (OCEAN)–Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that on March 21, 2023, Lisa Ziobro, 44, of Barnegat, was charged with two counts of Aggravated Arson and four counts of Arson.
On March 21, 2023, at approximately 7:30 a.m., Officers from the Barnegat Township Police Department and Barnegat Township Fire Departments were dispatched to a reported structure fire on Waterfall Lane. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire. The family dog was rescued and unharmed. A pet bird was unable to be rescued and perished in the fire.
A thorough and extensive investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, Barnegat Township Police Department Detective Bureau, and Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, determined that two separate fires had been intentionally set within the structure. The first fire was set on a mattress in a bedroom, and the second fire was set on a shower curtain in the bathroom. Further investigation determined that Ziobro – who resided at the residence – was responsible for setting both fires.
Ziobro was transported to Barnegat Township Police Headquarters, processed, and transported to the Ocean County Jail where she remains lodged pending a detention hearing.
Prosecutor Billhimer acknowledges the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, Barnegat Township Police Department Detective Bureau, Barnegat Township Police Department, and Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, for their combined and cooperative efforts in connection with this investigation.
The charges referenced above are merely accusations and the press and public are reminded that all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
R.P.C. 3.6(b)(6).
Carey used his position as a uniformed officer assigned to the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program to take advantage of victims who were already facing challenges in their lives.
March 22, 2023
BUCKS COUNTY, PA — James Carey, the former Warminster Township police officer who sexually assaulted five boys, was sentenced on Tuesday, March 21, 2023, to serve 24 ½ to 55 years in a state correctional institution.
Carey, 54, of Cape May Court House in New Jersey, committed the acts while working as a DA.R.E. officer, a volunteer firefighter and while running a program for troubled youth at the township’s recreation center more than two decades ago.
Carey entered an open no contest plea on Oct 27, 2022, to five counts each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse and corruption of minors, seven counts of indecent assault, two counts each of statutory rape and statutory sexual assault and one count of aggravated indecent assault.
Prior to sentencing President Judge Wallace H. Bateman Jr., heard impact statements from the five victims who courageously testified about the emotional trauma the disgraced officer inflicted on them.
One man said the damage caused years of anger and resentment, leading to substance abuse, incarceration, and suicide attempts. Another said his chance at a normal life was stolen by a “monster of a human being.”
Another victim said he lived his adolescent years in fear, blaming himself for Carey’s actions. “I spent my whole adult life hating myself,” he said. “This has impacted every aspect of my life: physically, mentally, financially and emotionally.”
Noticing Carey wouldn’t look at the victims as they made their statements or look at their childhood photos projected on a screen in the courtroom, Judge Bateman called Carey a coward who used his “badge and uniform as weapons of his depravity.”
First Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Schorn said Carey not only used his positions as a police officer and a volunteer firefighter to lure his victims, he also used their families, the community and even the court system. “He ingratiated himself into the lives of his victims, this is how he identified the most vulnerable among them, this is how he got away with perpetrating unimaginable sexual crimes upon children,” said Schorn, describing Carey as a “predator waiting to pounce.”
Schorn credited detectives and their unrelenting pursuit to locate victims and praised the victims as some of the most courageous men she’s ever met as a prosecutor.
Carey was arrested on April 7, 2021, following a lengthy investigation by Bucks County Detectives and an inquiry by a Bucks County Investigating Grand Jury that found Carey sexually assaulted four boys between 1989 and 2009.
The next month following the publicity of his arrest, a fifth victim came forward and Carey faced additional charges. The victim in that case said he was 13 when Carey sexually assaulted him.
Carey used his position as a uniformed officer assigned to the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program to take advantage of victims who were already facing challenges in their lives.
At a preliminary hearing in June 2021, the victims, now in their 30s and 40s, testified about the repeated abuse by Carey. Most of the assaults happened while Carey was in uniform, the victims testified.
Carey was a police officer for Warminster Township from 1989 to 2009, and previously and briefly worked for the North Wales Police Department in Montgomery County (June 1988 to August 1988) and the Warwick Township Police Department (July 1988 to May 1989).
“It doesn’t get much worse: When someone in a position of trust does what he did, it shakes the community to its core,” Schorn said. In addition to the sentence, Carey was also deemed a sexually violent predator.
During Tuesday’s sentencing, Bateman also criticized the actions of the police department during the time Carey worked there for failing to do more for the victims. “When a young man goes into the police department to make a report I would expect a more professional response,” he said.
The case was prosecuted by First Assistant District Attorney Jennifer M. Schorn and Deputy District Attorney Brittney Kern.
March 22, 2023
Update: Two dump trucks involved traffic is a mess in the area. Avoid the area. Also, two cars were involved.
LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP, NJ (MERCER)–NJ Department of Transportation is reporting a overturned dump truck on I-295 Southbound in the area of US Route 1 DOT expects at least 15-minute traffic delays in the area.
Update: From the scene two dump trucks are on their sides. Both trucks lost their loads of gravel across the roadway and there were some minor fluid spills from the overturned trucks.
Both drivers self extricated. One driver was reported to have a minor neck laceration and was transported to Captial Health Regional Medical Center in Trenton.
Trenton Fire Department Haz-Mat Team responded and applied oil absorbent to help clean up the spilled fluids.
Lawrence Fire Department Engine 20 is on scene.
There were two other cars involved and appeared to have side damage to their vehicles.
NJ DOT – TOC South: Overturned Dump Truck on I-295 southbound at Exit 67 – US 1 (Lawrence Twp) All lanes closed 10-15 minute delay use caution 11:51:20 AM
NJSP is monitoring roadway closure on I-295 SB at MP 67 in Lawrenceville, Mercer Co. The accident involves two overturned commercial vehicles. No fatalities or serious injuries reported at this time.
Please avoid the area if possible. Estimated time for reopening is 3-5 Hrs.
Further details to follow.
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