WALL — Police responding to a report of a possible kidnapping at knifepoint early February 12 determined no abduction had occurred, but they did arrest a Toms River man who matched the description in a regional alert and was later found to be wanted out of Middlesex County.
Officers with the Wall Township Police Department were dispatched at approximately 12:55 a.m. to the Wawa North at 1310 State Highway 34 after receiving a report of a man wearing a traffic vest and camouflage pants acting erratically.
While units were en route, dispatchers advised that the individual matched a “Be on the Lookout” alert issued by the Neptune Police Department involving a reported kidnapping. Authorities later confirmed that investigation revealed no kidnapping had taken place.
Earlier in the evening, around 10 p.m., the same 35-year-old man had been captured on a residential doorbell camera knocking on the door of a home in the township’s Presidential Streets neighborhood, police said.
Patrolman Clint Forgach located the man behind the convenience store. According to police, the individual refused to comply with lawful commands, prompting officers to conduct a high-risk stop. He was held at gunpoint until additional officers arrived and was then taken to the ground and secured.
Neptune police responded to the scene and assisted in the investigation. Officials determined the man appeared to be experiencing a medical episode.
A records check showed the suspect was listed as a wanted person by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office. He was transported to a local hospital for evaluation due to his medical condition. Forgach was identified as the arresting officer.
