3 Teens Hospitalized After Machete Attack During Confrontation In Lakewood

LAKEWOOD, NJ — Authorities are investigating what led up to an apparent machete attack in Lakewood that sent one teen to a trauma unit due to blood loss and left two other teens hospitalized, Lakewood police said Monday.

Lakewood police were called to Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus shortly before 11 p.m. by medical staff saying they had three people with stab wounds, Capt. Gregory Staffordsmith said.

The teens told police they had gotten out of their vehicle during an argument with people in another vehicle at the intersection of Ocean and New Hampshire avenues, Staffordsmith said. The victims told police they were attacked by two people with what is believed to be a machete during the confrontation at the intersection, he said.

The circumstances leading up to the confrontation are not clear, Staffordsmith said.

One of the victims suffered substantial blood loss and was flown to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick for treatment, he said.

The other two victims sustained serious injuries that were not life-threatening and remain hospitalized as well, Staffordsmith said. All three were listed as stable as of Monday afternoon.

Staffordsmith did not release any description of the suspects in the attack. He said the investigation is continuing, and Lakewood police are being assisted by the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office Major Crime Unit.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the Lakewood Police Department 732-363-0200 or the Ocean County Prosecutors Office 732-929-2027.