Alleged Gang Member From Asbury Park Faces Gun Charges

ASBURY PARK – An Asbury Park man made his initial appearance on Thursday after being charged with illegally possessing a handgun, US Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Lashawn Alford, 27, was charged with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He appeared by videoconference before US Magistrate Judge Douglas E. Arpert and was detained pending a bail hearing, according to a press release.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

On July 20th, Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office detectives and Neptune City police pfficers responded to an apartment complex in Neptune City to conduct surveillance of suspected gang activity.

Law enforcement officers observed Alford, a previously convicted felon, exit an apartment and get into the back of a car that drove out of the complex. Law enforcement knew Alford to be a member of the Queen Street II Bloods street gang and determined that Alford had an outstanding warrant for his arrest in Asbury Park, the release said.

Law enforcement stopped the car and arrested Alford. A loaded Smith and Wesson, model M&P Compact, .22 caliber pistol was located on the floor of the car where Alford had been sitting.

The felon in possession of a firearm charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019,