Shannon Mullen

@MullenAPP

TOMS RIVER - Upset that Lakewood’s police chief called it “a myth” that the Lakewood Civilian Safety Watch is patrolling here, a local homeowner has released video footage showing a LCSW vehicle cruising slowly through his North Dover neighborhood with its lights flashing.

Todd Sirota, who lives on Owen Court, said he shot the video shortly before 3 p.m. April 23.

“You can scream all you want, ‘It’s a myth, it’s not happening,’” he said, referring to the footage, “but what do you say to that?”

Lakewood's chief, Robert Lawson, said he spoke to the LCSW about the video Friday and was told the driver of the vehicle didn't realize he was in Toms River.

"The explanation I got was that at a Lakewood resident's request, LCSW was riding around in the southernmost part of Lakewood. Evidently the LCSW person wasn't familiar where the border was," Lawson said. "He has since been advised that he's not to go back into that area."

Officials of the watch group were not available for immediate comment.

On Thursday, Lawson, dismissed rumors and allegations of the neighborhood watch group operating in other towns as a “myth” fueled by “fear and ignorance.” In the past year hundreds of homes in North Dover and the east side of Jackson have been sold to buyers with ties to Lakewood’s expanding Orthodox Jewish community.

Lawson’s comments came after a meeting he hosted Thursday of police chiefs from neighboring towns and other local and county officials aimed at dispelling the “misinformation” surrounding the volunteer group, which has close ties to Lakewood’s Orthodox Jewish community. The group, which includes non-Orthodox volunteers, has operated in Lakewood since 2007. In addition to its normal safety patrols, the organization sponsors community-wide events, such as a recent bike and pedestrian safety program.

RELATED: Lakewood safety watch asked to stop patrolling in Toms River

On Thursday, Lawson drew a distinction between occasional sightings of LCSW vehicles in other towns and regular, organized patrols.

The chief cited isolated instances where the group’s volunteers may have made courtesy visits to out-of-town residents who requested their help, or turned their vehicles around while patrolling along Lakewood’s borders.

In some cases, Lawson said, volunteers may live in those towns and simply be driving their vehicles home.

But Sirota says the April 23 incident on Owen Court didn’t appear to fit any of those scenarios.

There was no emergency on his street, he said, and while several homes on the cul-de-sac have been sold recently, his new Orthodox neighbors hadn’t yet moved in at that point, making it unlikely that anyone had requested the LCSW to come by.

The entrance to the cul-de-sac is roughly a quarter-mile south of the Lakewood border.

READ MORE: Jackson officials: Lakewood watch group not allowed here

The video shows an white SUV with blue LCSW markings cruising slowly along the upscale cul-de-sac, its yellow emergency lights flashing.

Sirota and his wife noticed the vehicle pass by their home on its way up the street and waited for it to turn around at the end of the cul-de-sac and come back in the other direction. When the vehicle reaches North Maple Avenue, the emergency lights are shut off, the video shows.

Sirota wouldn’t speculate about what the vehicle was doing at the time.

“It just didn’t belong there,” he said.

Sirota, a 52-year-old dentist who has lived on the street for 21 years, said he chose not to post the video on Facebook weeks ago, out of concern that it would further stoke an already emotionally charged issue.

He said he decided to go public with the video now to make the point that residents’ concerns about the LCSW are based on more than rumors spread through social media.

“Look, they’re going to have to get their vehicles serviced, they’re going to have to drive through other towns,” Sirota said of the group’s volunteers.

However, he added, “The putting on the lights does bother me, because it makes it more of an official appearance. It gives it an official feel.”

Lawson said the LCSW is permitted to use flashing lights within confined neighborhoods, though not on major or secondary roadways.

Shannon Mullen: 732-643-4278; smullen4@gannettnj.com