Toms River Man Arrested At 2 Wawas Over Refusal To Wear Mask

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A Toms River man was arrested twice on Saturday after he allegedly got into altercations at two Wawas after he refused to wear a mask to go into the stores, the New Jersey Attorney General's Office said Monday.

Authorities said Stephen Breza, 70, allegedly became belligerent when he was told to wear a mask, a requirement of an executive order issued April 8 by Gov. Phil Murphy that required both employees and customers of retail establishments to wear face coverings to help prevent the transmission of the new coronavirus.

Toms River police were called to the Wawa at 179 Route 37 East, near Hooper Avenue, about 11 a.m. Breza allegedly became belligerent when he was told to wear a mask, and started screaming, flailing his arms, and cursing at employees, according to the information from the Attorney General's Office.

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He is accused of threatening to hit a customer in the store with a pipe, and when police arrived, he screamed at officers and resisted arrest, the attorney general said.

At 1:30 p.m., after he was processed at Toms River police headquarters and released, Breza went to the Wawa at 1600 Route 37 East, again refusing to wear a mask. He is accused of punching a male customer in the face, and when the victim left the store, Breza allegedly went to his car and retrieved a pipe, which he wielded menacingly. Breza was arrested again, the attorney general's office said.

Breza, who is being held at the Ocean County Jail, has been charged with violating the emergency orders, disorderly conduct, and failure to submit to fingerprinting. In the first case, he also was charged with resisting arrest (disorderly persons offense). In the second case, he also was charged with second-degree terroristic threats during an emergency and third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

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