Lakewood man charged after strapping grenade to utility pole in November, police say

A Lakewood man has been charged after police found an explosive device strapped to a utility pole in November, meant to deter someone from removing a poster related to the Israel-Hamas war, authorities said.

Benjamin Gibber, 29, was charged with creating a false public alarm, according to Capt. Gregory Staffordsmith, spokesperson for the Lakewood Police Department.

On November 19, officers responded to the corner of 4th Street and Forest Avenue after receiving information that a green grenade was fixed to a utility pole, Staffordsmith said. The perimeter was established and the New Jersey State Police Bomb Unit responded.

After extraction, it was determined that the device was inactive, according to Staffordsmith, but its presence created “large scale unrest” within the predominately Orthodox Jewish neighborhood.

Read more: Asbury Park Press