Toms River man pleads guilty to causing fire at Lakewood business

⚖️ Toms River man pleads guilty to bike theft and starting a fire in Lakewood

⚖️ The crimes occurred months apart with him being released on bail reform in between

⚖️ He remains in the Ocean County Jail awaiting sentencing

A Toms River man has plead guilty to two separate crimes he was previously charged with committing in neighboring Lakewood Township.

Jorge Euxaque-Ballesteros, 26, was arrested shortly after trying to steal a bike that was locked up at a Lakewood home on Congress Street on April 9, 2021, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer.

Lakewood Police received a description of the suspect at the time, and later found who they were looking for in a nearby wooded area.

Shawn Michaels

Euxaque-Ballesteros was then identified as the suspect behind the attempted robbery, was arrested, brought to the Ocean County Jail, and then released under New Jersey's Bail Reform Law guidelines.

He was arrested again by on Jan. 19, 2022, around 2:00 a.m., after setting fire to cardboard and paper in the basement of a local business on Cross Street, setting off the sprinkler alarm.

Billhimer said Euxaque-Ballesteros used to work at that business and had been recently fired.

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He was arrested in Toms River by the OCPO-Arson Squad and Lakewood Police and has been in the Ocean County Jail since.

In court on Friday, he pleaded guilty to attempted theft and aggravated arson. Billhimer said the State will be seeking a term of five years in prison for each offense which would run concurrently.

Billhimer said that Ocean County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Meghan O’Neill and Senior Assistant Prosecutor Jamie Schron handled the cases on behalf of the State.

New Jersey's most disgraceful child predators and accused predators

NJ arrests 31 accused child predators in Operation 24/7

A roundup of 31 men have been accused of sexually exploiting children online, state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal announced on July 14 while detailing "Operation 24/7."

The suspects “possessed and or distributed videos and images of child sexual abuse, including in many cases videos of young children being raped by adults,” Grewal said.

Chat apps and gaming platforms remain favorite hunting grounds for child predators and even as the pandemic winds down, many children have continued to spend more time online.

State Police received 39% more tips in just the first 6 months of 2021 than they received in the entire year in 2019. The following are suspects charged in "Operation 24/7."