Lakewood, NJ, rampage suspect: 'These are the real devils'

Court documents are revealing chilling new details about the motivation behind an anti-Semitic rampage in Lakewood last Friday.

Dion Marsh, 27, allegedly called Jews "the real devils" and promised family members "it's going to be a bloodbath."

The documents, obtained and detailed by NJ.com, reveal the police investigation and interviews with Marsh's relatives.

Marsh is charged with multiple crimes, including attempted murder and bias offenses.

The rampage began just after 1 p.m. Friday, with a carjacking. Police say Marsh forced a driver out of a vehicle and assaulted him before driving off. Later that same day, its alleged Marsh hit a person with a vehicle around 6 p.m. and then stabbed an Orthodox Jewish man in the chest less than an hour later.

NJ Advance Media, citing court documents, reports a relative told detectives Marsh has recently broken up with his girlfriend.

Using surveillance video and tips from the public, police eventually tracked Marsh to his home in Manchester. There, they found him lying in bed with a machete on his chest. He was arrested a short time later.

It was during his interview with detectives that his hatred of Jews was revealed, according to statements contained in police reports.

Asked why he did it, Marsh said, "It had to be done," and called Hasidic Jews "the real devils."

What the court documents do not reveal is why Marsh harbored such murderous thoughts, but prosecutors believe he was acting alone and not as part of any hate group.

In a statement, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said “Our investigation reveals that Marsh was acting alone and not in concert with anyone else."

Eric Scott is the senior political director and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at eric.scott@townsquaremedia.com

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