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Dion Marsh of Manchester Township was charged on Wednesday, April 13 with:
- Attempted murder,
- Attempted carjacking,
- Attempted kidnapping, and
- Three counts of bias intimidation.
All of the victims are Orthodox Jews, a spokesman for Billhimer said.
At least three more victims have been identified since the Friday, April 8 attacks, the prosecutor said.
On April 8, at approximately 1:15 p.m., Lakewood police responded to Martin Luther King Drive and Pine Street for a report of a carjacking. Responding officers determined that a male suspect approached a 2016 Toyota Camry, assaulted the driver, and fled the area in the vehicle.
At approximately 6:00 p.m., Lakewood police received a report of a pedestrian being struck by a motor vehicle in the area of Central Avenue and Carlton Avenue. The victim was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune and has subsequently been released.
At approximately 6:55 p.m., Lakewood police responded to a 9-1-1 call in reference to a stabbing in the vicinity of Pine Circle Drive and Lakewood New Egypt Road. Police discovered a male victim with a stab wound to his chest. The victim was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, treated for his injuries, and subsequently released.
At approximately 8:20 p.m., police from Jackson Township responded to a 9-1-1 call for a report of a pedestrian being struck by a motor vehicle in the area of Galassi Court.
Police were able to determine that the male victim had been struck by the same vehicle that was taken in the carjacking incident in Lakewood earlier in the day, Billhimer said. The victim was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center where he remained in critical but stable condition.
Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit and Manchester Township Police Department arrested Marsh at his residence without incident. Marsh is being held in the Ocean County Jail,
Detecrtives found that Marsh was responsible for additional criminal activity in Lakewood Township on April 8, Billhimer said.
Specifically, at approximately 1:10 p.m., in the area of Arlington Avenue and Lincoln Street in Lakewood, a male was traveling northbound on Arlington Avenue operating a 2011 Toyota Camry when he was approached by the suspect, who was on foot, Billhimer said. The suspect attempted to open the car door - which the victim locked as he watched the suspect approach the vehicle. Upon the suspect attempting to open the door, the victim accelerated the vehicle. The suspect reached through the open window and attempted to hold on to the vehicle while the victim continued to drive — traveling approximately one city block before the suspect let go.
Detectives further determined that at approximately 5:20 p.m., a male pedestrian was crossing Kimball Road at Central Avenue in Lakewood in the southern direction when a dark-colored sedan struck him from the right side, causing minor bodily injury, Billhimer said. The vehicle then fled the scene.
Additionally, at approximately 5:25 p.m., a 9-1-1 call was placed by a male in the area of Carlton Avenue and Central Avenue in Lakewood, reporting that his minor son had been approached by a black Honda Accord occupied by a skinny black male. The caller stated that the black male attempted to physically grab the minor victim and pull him into the vehicle but was unsuccessful, Billhimer said.
“Through our ongoing investigation, Detectives from the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major\ Crime Unit and Lakewood Township Police Department have been able to identify Marsh as the individual responsible for these additional criminal acts; he has been charged accordingly as set forth above,” Billhimer said.
"Marsh’s continuing course of conduct is alarming. A thorough review of the totality of the circumstances surrounding his intent, conduct and behavior lead us to the charge of terrorism. We are prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt, that Marsh intended to terrorize the Jewish community in Lakewood and Jackson on April 8, 2022,” Billhimer said.
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