Police: Man Wanted for Role in New Year's Eve Assault Surrenders
Police issued a warrant for Matthew Copeland, 21, of Forked River after the Dec. 31, 2011 incident
A man wanted by Lacey police in connection with a New Year's Eve assault surrendered on Friday.
Forked River resident Matthew Copeland, 21, turned himself in to Ocean County Sheriff's officers during early morning hours on Jan. 13, said Lt. James Veltri.
A warrant for Copeland's arrest was issued after police responded to a residence on Lakeside Drive South on Dec. 31 at 11:15 p.m. A 22-year-old Forked River male along with a 19-year-old Forked River female reported that they were invited to the home to celebrate New Years Eve.
Upon entering, the male was physically attacked, assaulted and robbed of $40 in cash and a cell phone valued at $600, Veltri said. While attempting to help the male, the female was punched in her face.
Dominick Difortuna, 18, was charged with robbery after Lacey police arrested him on Tuesday, Jan. 3.
Copeland was transferred to the Ocean County Jail in Toms River where he is being held on $150,000 bail. Difortuna was jailed at the same facility last week, his bail also set at $150,000.
Copeland has been arrested several times in the last year:
Copeland was indicted in August for stealing a necklace and chain, trespassing at the home of a woman on Taylor Avenue and having Oxycodone.
Copeland was previously indicted for having a 12-inch billy club on March 10 in Lacey. He has also been charged in three unrelated incidents with failure to return found or mislaid property after allegedly refusing to return a missing cell phone; burglary, theft, and possession of drug paraphernalia after he allegedly burglarized a car parked at Walmart; and driving while intoxicated, trespassing, and more after allegedly trespassing in the woods.
Jim
8:24 pm on Friday, January 13, 2012
A shame they can't lock him up for life. The decent people of Lacey would be safer.
over taxed
11:11 pm on Friday, January 13, 2012
Ashley last year you thought this man could do no wrong . what do you think now?? and look where you are now . The best thing you could do is get away and start your life over
ChevyGirl52733
11:24 pm on Friday, January 13, 2012
Scumbag must have gotten tired of running. I hope no one bails him out, he deserves to rot in there. If you look up junkie in the dictionary a picture of his face is there.
Carol
6:24 am on Sunday, January 15, 2012
Ditto Chevygirl.........You can Run but you cannot hide.....agree he deserves to stay there forever and get that page in the dictionary from friends if he even has any and just wallpaper his cell with his pix from the good ol Webster and carry on looking at himself every day.
Dont worry about it.
3:38 pm on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Mathew "MAC" Copeland you are just a piece of shit i hope your asshole gets torn shredded and ripped into 5 while your in jaill, you dont deserve to get out cause you will just come out and make this town shitty
mussel man
10:04 pm on Wednesday, January 25, 2012
is this the same "mac" who used to comment on the patch? mac was bashing a 9/11 responder who didnt want video cameras on the schoolbus a few weeks back on the patch. many nitwits in this town. a few months ago a car and a silver jeep came screeching around the corner on my block which is a quiet street. blasting thru the stop sign on lee way and racing right thru the stop sign on lakeshore drive causing a car to slam on its brakes . like something out of the french connection. i followed both cars to a house up by deerhead lake drive. the 20 something yr old got out of his car with a bat after i told him to slow down. screaming at the top of his lungs he shouted "its none of your business" . i said there are little kids that play on my street making it my business. i figured lacey pd gets paid enough so i gave them his plate number . let them deal with morons like these .another time a mustang went flying thru every stop sign for 6 blocks screeching out into rt 9 by caffertys. gave the cops his plate number. turned out he was 14. cops said they would talk to his dad. they could have ended up talking the dad about someone he killed.