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Merrill Spencer pleaded guilty on Nov. 22 to aggravated manslaughter, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer.
He was sentenced on Wednesday before Superior Court Judge Rochelle Gizinski and has been held in Ocean County Jail since his arrest in June 13, 2016, Billhimer said.
On June 13, 2016, Lakewood police officers responded to Martin Luther King Boulevard. Officers found Johntel Thomas, 23, of Toms River, with an apparent gunshot wound to the chest lying on the sidewalk.Thomas was pronounced dead a short time later, the prosecutor said.
Video surveillance footage helped identify Spencer as the shooter, Billhimer said.
Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Kristin Pressman and Assistant Prosecutor Kaitlyn Burke handled the case.
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