Man Lured Supposed Underage Girl Online: Monmouth Prosecutor

FREEHOLD – A Chatsworth man faces charges for seeking a "sexual encounter" with whom he thought was an underage girl, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said Friday.

Hazleton Newman, 31, is charged with second-degree luring, third-degree attempted endangering the welfare of a child and fourth-degree attempted sexual assault of a minor, the prosecutor's office said.

Newman, of Burlington County, was in custody in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution after a detention hearing Wednesday, Jan. 25.

An investigation determined that Newman was attempting to set up a sexual encounter with a person he believed to be a 14-year-old girl via electronic platforms and other forms of communication, the prosecutor's office said in a news release.

Investigators are seeking additional information about Newman’s activities, the prosecutor's office said.

The investigation was a joint effort by members of the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Computer Crimes Unit and Special Victims Bureau, along with members of the Monmouth County Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.

The prosecutor’s office was assisted by the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, Pemberton Township Police and the New Jersey State Police Red Lion Station.

Newman was in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution after being remanded by Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Paul X. Escandon during a hearing on Wednesday, Jan. 25.

Anyone with more information can contact Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Detective Anthony Lacher at 800-533-7443, authorities said.

Monmouth County Crime Stoppers has a confidential telephone tip-line at 1-800-671-4400. There are also online options: by downloading and using the free P3 Tips mobile app: https://www.p3tips.com/1182; by calling 800-671-4400; or by going to the website at www.monmouthcountycrimestoppers.com.

Convictions on charges of this nature are commonly punishable by terms of 5 to 10 years in state prison, along with being subject to the provisions of Megan’s Law registration and Parole Supervision for Life, the prosecutor's office said.

The case has been assigned to Monmouth County Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Competello.