NJ Man At Center Of Racist Rant Now Charged With Stalking

MOUNT LAUREL, NJ — A Mount Laurel man whose racist rant toward a Black neighbor sparked a community protest this week now faces charges of stalking a neighbor and damaging vehicles, authorities announced.

Edward Cagney Mathews, 45, has been charged with assault, harassment and biased intimidation in connection with a heated encounter between him and a neighbor that took place on July 2.

Following his arrest, the Mount Laurel Police Department applied for an Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) against Mathews, which would prohibit him from possessing any firearms, according to the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office.

Authorities applied for the order after a neighbor told police she suspected Matthews used a BB gun to damage her car, police said.

As part of the application, police executed a search warrant at his home. During the search, police said they seized a slingshot and multiple ball bearings, which matched the projectiles used to damage the vehicles. They also said they seized numerous psilocybin mushrooms, which are known for their hallucinogenic effect, along with packaging materials.

Police believe Matthews fired the ball bearings at cars belonging to his neighbor and her daughter, causing $2,350 in damage. He is also accused of stalking one of the vehicle owners, police said.

On July 2, a resident filed a harassment complaint with Mount Laurel police against Matthews. Later the same day, a Mount Laurel police officer responded to a home on a report of a male needing to be removed from the area. Upon arrival, the officer found Mathews in a verbal altercation with four residents.

Mathews, who was using racial slurs, was sent to his residence in an attempt to de-escalate the situation. The ensuing investigation resulted in Mathews being charged later that night for both incidents.

Mount Laurel police requested that the charges be placed on a warrant, which would have allowed officers to take Mathews into custody and place him in jail.

However, a Mount Laurel municipal judge instead decided to place the charges on a summons, preventing Matthews from being put in jail, police said.

Police were able to arrest Matthews after a video became public this week in which Matthews repeatedly yells racial slurs at a neighbor, calling him a "monkey" and a "n-----r." He is also seen chest-bumping a man who interceded between him and a neighbor.

When a Mount Laurel police officer arrives, he continues to shout the slurs, even as the officer addresses him by name and tells him to go home. Those charges were placed on a warrant, which allowed officers to take him into custody.

He was scheduled for a detention hearing on Thursday, before the stalking and vehicle charges emerged, police said. That hearing has been delayed, and the prosecutor’s office has petitioned the Superior Court to keep Mathews incarcerated while his charges are adjudicated.

On Tuesday, the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office announced it is launching an independent investigation into any and all incidents involving Mathews in Mount Laurel. Read more here: Independent Investigation Launched After NJ Man’s Racist Rant

To assist in the investigation, the prosecutor's office is presently asking anyone who has information about other incidents involving Mathews that they would like to share can do so by emailing the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office at tips@co.burlington.nj.us.

See related: Mount Laurel Man's Racist Rant On Video Sparks Protest