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A man who allegedly robbed a nearby Target store on Halloween tried to throw away a plastic bag that contained heroin and marijuana while in Ocean Township Police Headquarters, according to a news release from township police.

On Oct. 31, Ocean police responded to a strong arm robbery at the Target Greatland Store located in Seaview Square Mall. Their investigation revealed a male suspect, later identified as 45-year-old Asbury Park resident Luis O. Lao, allegedly assaulted a security person after the employee tried to detain him. The employee allegedly saw Lao attempt to shoplift over $400 worth of store merchandise, police said.

Complaints were signed against Lao but his whereabouts were unknown at the time.

A month later, on Nov. 30, Lao was picked up by Asbury Park police and turned over to Ocean police. While in Ocean police headquarters, Officer Randy Slawsky saw Lao remove a plastic bag from his pants and try to discard it, according to police. Slawsky alerted detectives, who found the bag contained 26 bags of suspected heroin and a small amount of marijuana, police said.

Lao was charged with one count of robbery for the Oct. 31 incident at Target, possession of heroin and possession of under 50 grams of marijuana.

His bail was set at $20,000 with no option to post ten percent. Lao was transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution to await a future court hearing.

[Screen grab at top taken from Google Maps.]

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