Man shot at while walking along D&R Canal State Park towpath in Lawrence
At about 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 24, a man was shot at while walking on the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park towpath in Lawrence, police said. The man was not hit and there were no injuries.
The incident took place next to the footbridge that connects the trail system over Brunswick Pike just north of Bakers Basin Road, police said.
Police officers in Lawrence Township said they heard the sound of gunfire coming from the same wooded area when they arrived on the scene. Officers observed a man run into a nearby home, where he was believed to have barricaded himself. Multiple spent shell casings were located in the area.
Several search warrants were executed on the 3000 block of Brunswick Pike. John Kachmar, 22, of Lawrence was arrested and charged with aggravated assault, assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.
Police said the investigation is ongoing and additional charges are expected to be filed.
Anyone who has information regarding the incident is asked to contact Lawrence Township
Police Detective Sean Kerins at 609-844-7121 or via email at skerins@lawrencetwp.com, or Detective Ryan Dunn at 609-844-7125 or via email at rdunn@lawrencetwp.com.
Krystal Knapp is the founding editor of Planet Princeton. Follow her on Twitter @krystalknapp. She can be reached via email at editor AT planetprinceton.com. Send all letters to the editor and press releases to that email address.
Glad that one was caught right away.
Many locals hunt deer on this block for food, since they are poor. Before anyone jumps to judgement, this local may have just been sighting in his gun before he went hunting, and the park-walker misunderstood what was going on. You often hear gunshots in this neighborhood, and there’s nothing illegal about that, because there are hunters living and hunting there legally. I just saw the house where the search warrant was executed, and all the windows are broken out, the front door is missing, and all their possessions are outside. That must have been quite a search!