Arrest Made in Machete Attack Near Mantoloking Bridge

Authorities arrested two New York City men and charged them in a machete assault on the barrier island side of the Mantoloking Bridge Wednesday night.

According to Ocean County Prosecutor Marlene Lynch Ford, eyewitnesses placed 911 calls at approximately 7:09 p.m. Wednesday reporting that an individual brandishing a machete-type weapon was involved in an altercation with other individuals near the intersection of Route 35 and Herbert Street in Mantoloking.

Based on a vehicle description given by the eyewitnesses, Mantoloking police stopped a blue Subaru with New York license plates and found a back seat passenger, identified as Michael Villanueva, 25, of New York City, with blood on his arms and clothing, Ford said.

Police later learned three people were being treated at CentraState Medical Center in Freehold for "slashing and penetrating wounds inflicted by a sharp weapon," Ford said.

An investigation revealed those individuals sustained their injuries during the altercation with Villanueva and the Subaru's driver, Lenin Herrera, 26, of the Harlem section of Manhattan, said Ford.

Both Villanueva and Herrera were charged with aggravated assault, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the machete, possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes and unlawful possession of a weapon.

Bail for both men was set at $250,000 cash by Superior Court Judge Stephanie M. Wauters. Neither of the two men were listed as being inmates in the Ocean County or Monmouth County jails Thursday night, according to jail records.

Police are still investigating the incident, Ford said. Anyone with information on the alleged assault is being asked to call Detective Thomas Tiernan of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office at 732-929-2027 or Patrolman William Shewan of the Mantoloking Police Department at 732-892-0832.