Long Branch woman arrested for calling in bomb threat to MCPO Office

Calling in a false bomb threat to the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office Friday January 19 may land a Long Branch woman in state prison for a decade.

Prosecutors have charged Shuanita Foskey, 48, of Norwood Avenue after she allegedly called their building, spoke with the switchboard operator and told them there was a bomb inside that would soon explode.

The entire building was evacuated but there were no injuries.

Prosecutors Office spokesman Charlie Webster said the incident caused the deployment of numerous law enforcement agencies, including bomb sniffing K-9 units from Monmouth, Middlesex and Ocean County Sheriff's Offices and the New Jersey Transit Police Department.

An investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office and Long Branch Police, with assistance from the Ocean Township Police and Aurora, Colorado police departments made the determination Foskey was the person who made the false report.

Foskey is charged with second degree False Public Alarm and faces a 10-year prison term along with a civil fine that could total tens-of-thousands-of-dollars.

She was expected to appear in Superior Court Monday for her first appearance in the matter with a detention hearing to be scheduled for later this week.

"Over the past few years, Monmouth County first responders have carried a huge burden responding to these phony threats of bombs and active shooters. Law enforcement everywhere treats every one of these threats as a potentially serious threat to the safety and well-being of our citizens," Monmouth County Prosecutor Chris Gramiccioni said. "These phony threats take an emotional toll on the people affected by the hoax, and create an undue burden on valuable assets. These false bomb threats are not a game or joke, but a crime that will be aggressively pursued by this Office."

Despite these charges, every defendant is presumed innocent, unless and until found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, following a trial at which the defendant has all of the trial rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and State law.

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