Schools Were Closed and Shelter-in-Place Order Issued After Gunfire Was Reported

CLERMONT – The New Jersey State Police have announced the arrest of one of two suspects in the Tuesday morning shooting incident that led to Dennis Township schools being closed for the day.

State Police detectives found the suspect within the Tamerlane Campground and subsequently identified him as Jamar Antoine Lovett, 28, from Cape May Court House. The second suspect remains at large.

According to a press release issued Sept. 11, State Police troopers responded on Tuesday, Sept. 10, at about 5:30 a.m. to a report of a shooting at a residence on Kings Highway in Dennis Township.

A homeowner reported that he had observed two suspects stealing a dirt bike. The homeowner confronted one of the suspects, who fled on foot into a wooded area. The homeowner chased after him and reported being shot at. 

Dennis Township schools were closed that morning after the incident, but a shelter-in-place order that had been issued for the township was lifted Tuesday afternoon, with State Police Sgt. Jeffrey Lebron saying at that time that there were no longer any active threats.

State Police were looking for two Black males, one reported to be riding a dirt bike and the other on foot, after police were called to the scene. State Police used a helicopter to search an area between Kings Highway south and the Middle Township border.

Social media buzzed about the shooting, with one Hagen Road resident claiming he heard six gunshots in the morning and then an alarm going off.

The Dennis School District had announced the schools would be closed Sept. 10 “due to the continued threat in our area and in concern for the safety of our students and staff.” Another announcement from the district said that, due to the danger, buses were not running, and it advised parents to keep their children indoors until further notice.

Dennis Township put out a notice that advised residents to be on the alert and to keep themselves and their property secure.

Since one of the suspects was seen on a dirt bike, residents speculated on social media that they could have been involved in recent thefts of dirt bikes in the township. At least three were stolen in the past several days.

Lovett was charged with unlawful possession of a handgun with a prior No Early Release Act conviction, armed robbery, possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes, aggravated assault, certain person not to have a weapon due to a prior conviction, burglary, theft and conspiracy.

He was lodged in Cape May County Jail pending a detention hearing.

The incident remains under investigation.

Anyone with further information is asked to contact New Jersey State Police Troop A, Woodbine Station, at 609-861-5698. Anonymous tips are welcome.

Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or 609-886-8600, ext. 128.