Gangs of Bridgewater fighting in Manville

Police charge two with assault

By:Beth Kressel
   Two juveniles face assault charges after police broke up a teen gang ruckus on North Main Street, last week.
   Police in Bridgewater and Manville say the fighting may have been caused by teens from the Finderne area of Bridgewater that are part of a group thought to call itself The World.
   The fight occurred just outside Reading Cinema on North Main Street at 10:43 p.m. July 14, Manville police said. Two Bridgewater teens thought to be members of The World were charged with assault after pummeling another Bridgewater youth barehanded and with a baseball bat.
   Minors from various portions of Bridgewater seem to be organizing into gang-type groups, said Bridgewater police Lt. Richard Borden, who said that the teens might not be an "official gang" yet; just groups from a specific part of town.
   He suggested that gangs of teens, whether officially organized or not, are drawn to popular hangouts like movie theaters. He did not know why they would choose Manville in particular for the fight.
   One of the accused hit another minor in the head with a baseball bat and he was charged with aggravated assault that night and turned over to the Middlesex County Juvenile Detention Center, Manville police say.
   In June, the victim had a fight with a friend of the accused at a Bridgewater school and the alleged assault was in response to this earlier fight according to Manville police. Lt. Borden said that the meeting between the victim and his attackers was "a chance encounter."
   The other teen was charged with simple assault the following day. Manville police say that he punched the same victim. The second aggressor was not taken to the detention center.
   The victim, also a Bridgewater resident, but not affiliated with a particular group, was taken to the Somerset County Medical Center by his parents and was later released.
   A caller reported to police at 10:43 p.m. that about 20 teens were at the scene. But when police arrived, there were only five or six individuals there.
   Manville police received another call about possible gang activity at 10:03 p.m. July 18. The caller said that a large fight at Ten Pin Lanes in the Rustic Mall might occur between members of The World and another group of Bridgewater teens from the Bradley Gardens area.
   Manville police called the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department for extra police assistance. No fighting occurred that evening.
   Lt. Borden attributes the formation of teen factions to the population growth in Bridgewater.
   "It’s something that happens when the population increases," he said. "Neighborhoods develop and juveniles are clustered in certain portions of town. Gangs try to recruit members and they might see Bridgewater as a boon because of all the kids."
   The Bridgewater police will be working with high school officials in Bridgewater to "keep an eye and monitor" any gang activity this fall, he said.