Social Media-Spurred Party Leads Underage Drinking Charges For Brick Pair: Police

LACEY, NJ -- Social media posts inviting Brick Township teens to drive down to Lacey to party and drink alcohol in the woods led to two Brick residents being charged with underage drinking, Lacey police said.

Brittany Stowman, 20, of Arbutus Avenue and Paul Vitale, 20, of Michigan Avenue, both were charged with underage consumption of alcohol after their arrests on Saturday, April 9, Lacey Police Chief David A. Paprota said.

Lacey police had added extra patrols in the area after they saw the social media postings encouraging Brick teens coming to the wooded areas of Lacey for parties featuring alcohol, he said. Brick authorities were notified about the postings and assisted Lacey police in contacting the parents of the youths to reduce the likelihood of problems, the chief said.

Officer Dimitrios Tsarnas was patrolling the Carusoville area just after midnight when he spotted a small bonfire and a group of people drinking alcoholic beverages, Paprota said.

The investigation at the scene led to the arrests of Stowman and Vitale; the Bamber Lakes Fire Department responded and extinguished the fire, he said.

Stowman and Vitale were released with summonses, he said.