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By Thomas Kika
Weekend Staff Writer
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Authorities are on the hunt for suspects in the throwing of a lit explosive from a pickup truck near a synagogue.
The incident occurred around 9:30 p.m. Saturday in Lakewood, New Jersey, a town roughly 37 miles east of Trenton near the Jersey Shore. Police initially responded to reports of an explosion and smoke on Squankum Road near Shafto Road, according to WABC News.
A resident told police that they saw two pickup trucks, one darker and one lighter in color, driving slowly in the time before they heard the blast. Footage taken from their home security confirmed this, showing two trucks turning a corner and moving slowly along a road in tandem, almost seeming to stop at one point before speeding up and out of frame. Shortly after, a blast can be seen in a wooded area just off the street, followed by a plume of smoke.
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Two individuals can also be seen crossing the street behind the trucks, with police confirming that they were 50 to 100 feet away when the blast occurred. Neither they nor anyone else in the neighborhood were injured by the explosion.
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Police are now carrying out an investigation alongside the Lakewood Civilian Safety Watch. No firm evidence has been found to suggest bias was a motivation, but nevertheless, the fact that it occurred in an Orthodox Jewish community close to a neighborhood synagogue has raised alarms about potential antisemitism.
"When something like that is thrown and makes a really loud noise or really loud flash, it really rattled a lot of people," Lakewood Councilman Meir Lichtenstein told WABC News. "Children were scared, people were scared, it's hard to determine if it was Memorial Day fireworks that someone was fooling around with or if they were actually targeting the Orthodox community, but it certainly rattles people."
The case is being overseen by Detective Kevin Donnelly at the Lakewood Police Department. Individuals with information relevant to the case are urged to call 732-363-0200, Ext. 5346.
Newsweek has reached out to the Lakewood Police Department via email for comment.
Estimates from 2018 put the Jewish population of Lakewood at around 90,000, or roughly two-thirds of residents. As such, Lakewood was among the numerous communities across the country that saw an increase in police presence in response to online neo-Nazi threats of a "National Day of Hate" in February, despite a lack of concrete threats to the community.
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