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Detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office were watching along with local police when Lashawn Alford, 27, emerged from his Neptune City apartment and got into the back seat of a car that drove out of the complex, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said.
Units moved in quickly and took Alford, a member of the Queen Street II Bloods, into custody, Carpenito said.
On the floor of the vehicle near Alford they found a .22-caliber Smith and Wesson M&P Compact pistol, the U.S. attorney said.
Alford -- who served state prison time for weapons, drugs and aggravated assault -- was ordered detained by a U.S. District Court judge in Trenton this past week following a video-conferenced first appearance.
He's charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
Carpenito's office is prosecuting the case as part of Project Guardian, a U.S. Justice Department initiative aimed at reducing gun violence by enforcing federal firearms laws.
He crredited special agents of the ATF's Trento Field Office, police from Neptune City and detectives from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office with the investigation leading to the charges.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Matthews of Carpenito's Criminal Division in Trenton is representing the government.
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