Man Arrested In 2 Toms River Bank Robberies

TOMS RIVER, NJ — An Ocean County man has been arrested in connection with a pair of bank robberies in Toms River on Tuesday, Toms River police said Thursday.

Daniel J. McCarthy, 68, was arrested Wednesday at a motel in East Brunswick, said Jillian Messina, media relations specialist for the Toms River Police Department.

Police were called to First Financial Bank on Route 9 shortly after 2 p.m. Tuesday for a report of an attempted bank robbery, Messina said.

The initial investigation found a middle-aged white man who was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, sunglasses, dark pants, and a surgical mask gave a note to a teller demanding money, but he walked away before receiving any money, she said.

While police were investigating the First Financial incident, police dispatch received a call from Santander Bank, just north of First Financial on Route 9, reporting a robbery. A man fitting the same description handed the teller a note and left the bank with an undisclosed amount of money, Messina said.

On Wednesday, Toms River detectives developed a lead on a minivan that was used during the robberies, leading to a joint investigation with the East Brunswick and Berkeley Township police departments.

The minivan and McCarthy were found at a motel in East Brunswick, and he was arrested following surveillance by detectives, Messina said.

McCarthy, who has prior addresses in Jackson and East Brunswick, has been charged by Toms River police with one count of second-degree robbery and one count of second-degree attempted robbery.

Additional charges are pending further investigation by the agencies involved, Messina said. McCarthy is being held in the Ocean Cointy Jail pending a detention hearing.

The Ocean County Sheriff's Department Crime Scene Unit assisted in processing the scene. Anyone with information about these incidents is asked to contact the Toms River Police Department Detective Bureau at [email protected].