Man Sought Brick ShopRite Parking Lot Stabbing Turns Himself In: Officials

BRICK, NJ — A Seaside Heights man who was wanted in connection with a stabbing in the ShopRite parking lot has turned himself in, authorities announced Monday.

Michael Stallworth, 37, who is charged with attempted murder, turned himself in to the Ocean County Sheriff's Office on Sunday, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Brick Township Police Chief James Riccio said in a joint news release.

Stallworth had been a fugitive since the July 26 stabbing, authorities said. He is being held at the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.

Police were called to the ShopRite parking lot about 4 p.m. on July 26 and found a 44-year-old man who had been stabbed in the back, authorities said. He was taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, Neptune, where he initially was hospitalized in critical condition. The victim has since been released from the hospital, the prosecutor's office said.

Investigators from the prosecutor’s office Major Crime Unit and High Tech Crime Unit, the Brick Township Police Department, and the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit identified Stallworth as the person who stabbed the victim, the prosecutor's office said, and a warrant for his arrest was issued that day.

In addition to attempted murder, Stallworth has been charged with possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and unlawful possession of a weapon, the prosecutor's office said.

The Lakewood Township Police Department assisted in the investigation, authorities said.

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