NJ Man Admits to Stabbing Victim in Back in ShopRite Parking Lot

BRICK — A Seaside Heights man has confessed to stabbing another person in a ShopRite parking lot, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer.

35-year-old Michael Stallworth pleaded guilty to aggravated assault on Monday in exchange for up to seven years in state prison.

According to Billhimer, Stallworth stabbed a 44-year-old man in the back repeatedly at the parking lot on Route 70 in Brick at around 4 p.m. on July 26, 2021.

Despite multiple stab wounds, the victim was not killed. He was taken to a hospital in Neptune and later released.

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At the time of the incident, Billhimer called it a "targeted attack." Authorities have still not revealed a possible motive.

Stallworth was on the lam for over a month after the stabbing, Billhimer said. He turned himself in to law enforcement later that year on Aug. 29 and has been held at Ocean County jail.

Prosecutors will recommend the seven-year sentence in state prison at Stallworth's next court appearance on Feb. 24.