Prosecutors Probe Allegations Against Ocean City Beach Patrol

OCEAN CITY, NJ — The Cape May County Prosecutor's Office is investigating allegations of sexual harassment against members of the Ocean City Beach Patrol.

The allegations surfaced last week on a new Instagram account, @ocbp_predators, which has more than 150 anonymous posts as of Monday.

The posts include blocks of text detailing incidents of sexual harassment and assault people experienced during their time in or around the Beach Patrol. The incidents allegedly took place both inside and outside the workplace.

According to the account's description, it is accepting private messages from users about their experiences. Over five days, the account has amassed more than 6,000 followers.

Ocean City spokesperson Doug Bergen did not return Patch’s request for comment on Monday. Bergen told the Ocean City Sentinel last week that the city was made aware of the account when it was created Wednesday.

"The city has strict sexual harassment policies and procedures in place and acts immediately on every reported complaint,” Mayor Jay Gillian said Friday in a statement. “I have directed Fire Chief Jim Smith to build on existing policies and do whatever it takes to ensure employees feel safe coming forward. I want to continue to make sure all our city team members work in a safe environment.”

Investigators urge anyone with information or who has been a victim to contact the Prosecutor’s Office at 609-465-1135, report it anonymously through the Cape May County Sheriff’s Tip Line at cmcsheriff.net, or call Cape May County Crime Stoppers at 609-889-3597.

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