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The 15-count grand jury indictment was returned Friday against Edward C. Mathews of Mount Laurel, according to Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina
Mathews was being held in Burlington County Jail in Mount Holly, where he has been held since being taken into custody at his former residence in the 3600 block of Grammercy Way last summer, Coffina said.
An investigation began July 2, 2021, after a resident came to the Mount Laurel Police Department to file a harassment complaint against Mathews.
A short time later on the same date, a Mount Laurel police officer responded to a Coventry Way residence on a report of a male needing to be removed from the area. Police allegedly found Mathews in a verbal altercation with four residents, Coffina said.
Mathews, who allegedly was using racial slurs, was sent to his residence by police in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, the prosecutor said. The ensuing investigation resulted in Mathews being charged later that night for both incidents.
Mount Laurel police requested that the charges be placed on a warrant, which would have allowed officers to take Mathews into custody and place him in jail, Coffina said. However, this request was denied by the Municipal Court judge who approved the charges, which were instead placed on a summons and prevented the defendant from being placed behind bars, the prosecutor said.
Mathews was ultimately arrested when the Prosecutor’s Office brought further charges from the July 2 incident.
Additional charges were filed following a warranted search of Mathews’ residence by Mount Laurel police. One of the victims of the harassment charges reported to police that she suspected Mathews had used a BB gun to damage vehicles belonging to her and her daughter, Coffina said.
Seized as a result of the search were a slingshot and multiple ball bearings, which matched projectiles used to damage vehicles in the neighborhood where Mathews resided, Coffina said.. The investigation revealed that Mathews had fired the ball bearings at two vehicles belonging to his neighbors, causing $2,350 in damage. He is also accused of stalking one of the vehicle owners.
Also seized were numerous psilocin mushrooms, which are known for their hallucinogenic effect, along with packaging materials, which resulted in the drug charges, the prosecutor said.
One of the charges Mathews is facing was filed after a handwriting analysis performed by the FBI revealed that he had written a threatening note left on a neighbor’s vehicle, Coffina said. Feces also allegedly had been smeared on the vehicle, the prosecutor said.
The investigation was conducted by the Prosecutor’s Office and the Mount Laurel Police Department. The lead investigators are BCPO Detective Daniel Schules and MLPD Detective Luis Amaro.
Assistant Prosecutor Jamie Hutchinson is handling the case.
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