Man accused of bias crime spree in Lakewood now charged with terrorism

The Manchester man accused in last week’s violent, antisemitic crime spree in Lakewood and Jackson is now charged with terrorism related to the series of attacks.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Lakewood Police Chief Gregory Meyer on Thursday announced terrorism and more charges against Dion Marsh in connection with Friday’s rampage that targeted Hasidic Jews.

Marsh, 27, was charged last week with three counts of attempted murder, three counts of bias intimidation, carjacking, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon.

Those charges stem from the forcible taking of a car in Lakewood; a pedestrian being intentionally struck by a car in Lakewood; another pedestrian being intentionally struck by a car and then stabbed in the chest in Lakewood; and another pedestrian intentionally struck by a car in Jackson, all within a span of less than eight hours.

Marsh has admitted to those acts and told detectives in a taped statement last week, ‘It had to be done,’’ according to a police affidavit of probable cause to charge him with the crimes.

Marsh proceeded to tell the detectives, “These are the real devils,’’ and when asked to whom he was referring, he responded, “Hasidic Jews,’’ the affidavit said.

The terrorism charged lodged against Marsh is punishable by 30 years to life in prison, Billhimer said.

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In addition to that charge, Marsh was charged Wednesday with an additional count of attempted murder, three additional counts of bias intimidation and one count each of attempted carjacking and attempted kidnapping.

The new charges are the result of an ongoing investigation that revealed Marsh “was responsible for additional criminal activity in Lakewood on April 8,,’’ Billhimer and Meyer said in a joint news release.

The news release provided the following details of the additional criminal activity attributed to Marsh:

• At 1:10 p.m., a man was driving north on Arlington Avenue in a 2011 Toyota Camry when a man approached on foot and tried to open the car door. The motorist locked the door as a result and accelerated the vehicle. The suspect reached through the car’s open window and attempted to hold on as the car sped away. The vehicle travelled about a block before the culprit let go.

• At 5:20 p.m., a pedestrian was crossing Kimball Road at Central Avenue when he was struck by a dark-colored sedan. The victim suffered minor injuries. The vehicle fled the scene.

• At 5:25 p.m., a man called 911 to report that his minor son had been approached by a car occupied by a man who tried to grab the child and pull him into the car. The attempt was unsuccessful.

“Marsh’s continuing course of conduct is alarming," Billhimer said. “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. This young man will be held accountable for this conduct.’’

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Marsh has admitted committing the crimes he previously was charged with, according to the police affidavit.

In one of the incidents, Marsh drove over a curb and onto a lawn to purposely strike a pedestrian, police documents allege.

In another, Marsh first struck a pedestrian with a car and, when the victim said something to him and took out a phone, Marsh grabbed a steak knife from the car and stabbed the man in the chest, the documents said.

Complaints previously signed against Marsh, charging him with bias intimidation, allege he attacked his victims with the purpose “to intimidate an individual or group of individuals because of their religion’’ and “due to their religious practices.’’

Marsh was arrested without incident late Friday night at the Falcon Street home in Manchester, where he lived with his grandmother. When police went there to arrest him, he was lying on a bed, clasping a machete to his chest, according to the police affidavit.

Prior to his arrest, a relative of Marsh reported to police that he recently broke up with his girlfriend and said, “It’s going to be a blood bath,’’ the affidavit said.

The violent crime spree began about 1:15 p.m. at Martin Luther King Drive and Pine Street in Lakewood, where authorities said Marsh assaulted a man, forced him out of his gray, 2016 Toyota Camry and drove away in it.

Police secured surveillance footage that captured the carjacking, obtaining an image of the perpetrator in the process, the affidavit said.

An unidentified concerned citizen later contacted police, reported seeing the surveillance video and identified the alleged assailant as Marsh, according to the affidavit.

Marsh, meanwhile, continued his spree, according to police documents containing the initial charges. Those documents provided the following details of crimes Marsh was originally charged with:

At 6:06 p.m., Marsh is alleged to have struck a man with a different vehicle — one which he later said belonged to his grandmother — at Central and Carlton avenues in Lakewood, authorities said. The victim was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune.

When Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan advised Marsh at a virtual court proceeding Wednesday that he is charged with bias intimidation and attempted murder in that incident, Marsh responded, “I’m pretty sure he did die, sir. I’m pretty sure he did die.’’

No fatalities have been reported in connection with the crime spree.

At 6:55 p.m. Friday, police responded to a report of a man stabbed in the chest at Pine Circle Drive and Lakewood-New Egypt Road in Lakewood. Marsh later told detectives he had returned to that area with the car that was taken in the earlier carjacking and struck a pedestrian with it, the police affidavit said. When the pedestrian made a comment and took out his phone, Marsh told detectives he stabbed him with a steak knife he had taken from his grandmother’s house, according to the affidavit.

A complaint in that incident said the victim suffered life-threatening injuries. Authorities said he, too, was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center.

At 8;23 p.m. Friday, police in Jackson received a report of a pedestrian struck on Galassi Court. The complaint against Marsh in that incident, charging him with attempted murder and bias intimidation, accuses him of purposely attempting to cause the victim’s death “by driving a vehicle over the curb and onto a grass lawn and purposely striking a pedestrian.’’

Police documents said the pedestrian was seriously injured and in critical condition as a result. That victim also was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, authorities said.

The Toyota Camry taken in the earlier carjacking was abandoned near the scene in Jackson, the police affidavit said. Marsh later told detectives that the car became disabled when he drove over a curb, the affidavit said. He told police he hitchhiked back to his grandmother’s house, the affidavit said.

He also told detectives that earlier in the day, he was outside a church in Lakewood, trying to get a ride home, when he “attempted to get in multiple vehicles, and when he could not, he forced the driver out of one vehicle, a gray 2016 Toyota Camry, and fled the area in the vehicle,’’ the affidavit said.

Marsh was scheduled to have a detention hearing Wednesday, but it is unclear whether that will be postponed because of the new charges.

Marsh is being held without bail at the Ocean County Jail.

Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues, unsolved mysteries and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Lakewood NJ: Antisemitic crime defendant faces terrorism charge