LETTER TO THE EDITOR
TOMS RIVER, NJ – For years, a now-defunct website and Facebook page that caught the attention of the Department of Justice, New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy were rumored to be a red flag operation being conducted from within the Frum community.
For years, the site posted anti-semitic rants about Orthodox Jews, provoking non-Jews to respond in rage, dividing a community, and causing damages that have taken years to repair.
During its heyday, many in Ocean County believed the website was an inside job, run in an intentionally nefarious attempt to divide Jews and non-Jews and to create a body of evidence to be used in multiple multi-million dollar lawsuits to ‘break the will’ of both Jackson and Toms River elected officials, voters, and residents.
It was believed to be a far-fetched conspiracy theory, until now.
Shortly after Rise Up Ocean County began being investigated by the FBI, Department of Justice, and Attorney General’s Office, it was mysteriously shut down without notice. In its place, a new Lakewood News Network website and magazine suddenly appeared.
Now, Shore News Network has learned the man behind the website and platform and the new publications was an Orthodox Jewish Jackson resident.
The resident, who is not being named at this time has admitted to feeding news and providing financial support to the defunct website’s former frontman. The operator of the site also admitted openly to his cordial relationship with the insider and his financial support of the website.
Rise Up Ocean County has been cited by the federal government, state government, county officials, and others, sharing pages of documents of ‘anti-semitic’ comments provoked by the operators of Rise Up Ocean County on both social media and on its website.
The man behind the scam to lure people into the trap of making anti-Semitic comments is also the publisher of the new Jackson Pulse, an Orthodox Jewish-focused community newsletter distributed to Jewish residents in the community. Topics in the paper have ranged from calling for a ban on Christmas lights in Jackson to successes of the community in local politics with content exclusive to the community.
The insider and Rise Up Ocean County allegedly colluded for years to use the anti-semitic platform to settle political differences and used the platform to provoke residents in Toms River and Jackson into publishing ‘anti-semitic’ comments online, simply to ‘collect evidence’ against residents to be used in lawsuits against both towns by private, state, and federal agencies.
Everything residents said on the platform was used against both towns in pushing a pro-Orthodox agenda and to secure victories in multi-million dollar lawsuits. While Rise Up Ocean County may have had misguided good intentions in the beginning, it turned into a political platform that attacked Jackson Mayor Michael Reina for years and supported Toms River Mayor Mo Hill, even openly endorsing his candidacy for re-election.
Those lawsuits amounted to large financial gains for the involved litigants, including Agudath Israel of America. They also resulted in both towns being forced to change their zoning laws under pressure from the Department of Justice. The person behind the site later went on to work for the campaign of New Jersey Assemblyman Avi Schnall.
Schnall, the director of AIoA of America said he had hired the person as a political strategist during his successful 2023 campaign. He credits Schnall’s victories to his political activism and messaging control through his media operations.
After it became clear that he had orchestrated the messaging on Rise Up Ocean County and paid the owner of the website, members of the Jewish community began distancing themselves from him. He began using his platform on Lakewood News Network to launch attacks on local politicians who had shunned him.
Even Schnall created distance between himself and the insider.
On Wednesday, Schnall acknowledged that the operator worked on his campaign in 2023, adding “[He] does not work for my office and has nothing to do with my office. He is not paid by my office. I don’t know what happened over there.”
Schnall said he was unaware of the person’s involvement with Rise Up Ocean County. The Lakewood News Network, where he works as a publisher for the Jackson Pulse, when questioned about his involvement in Rise Up Ocean County simply said, “We have no idea what that might refer to.”
The Jackson Pulse and Lakewood News Network are both subsidiaries of The Voice of Lakewood, a magazine published and distributed in Lakewood Township. He serves as a content writer and influencer at both publications.
Rise Up Ocean County has been cited in multiple lawsuits and government documents as a provocateur of hate between Orthodox Jews and non-Orthodox Jews in New Jersey and beyond. His involvement in the website was to use the website to continue dividing both communities for his own personal and political gains and to win large-sum lawsuits.
He would not comment on his involvement in Rise Up Ocean County, which was taken offline shortly after it became a centerpiece of the Department of Justice investigation into Jackson and Toms River. It was also the main body of evidence used in Agudath Israel’s successful multi-million-dollar lawsuit victory against Jackson Township.
While conspiracy theories were circulating that Rise Up Ocean County was a false flag operation, those theories were dismissed until recently.
Recently, he openly disclosed to Shore News Network that he maintained a working relationship with the site’s owner and even paid him, so he could control the messaging on the platform. He used his paid influence with Rise Up Ocean County to attack his political opponents and to sway state and federal court cases against Toms River and Jackson.
The former owner of Rise Up Ocean County also disclosed to Shore News Network that he and his partner at the site were ‘good friends’ and that he provided him with financial assistance on multiple occasions. There have also been allegations that former representatives of Mo Hill’s political campaign were also the source of articles attacking others and provoking dissent within the community.
The involvement of Lakewood News Network and the Jackson Pulse with Rise Up Ocean County is unknown, but both publications appeared shortly after the ultimate demise of Rise Up Ocean County.
The operator’s involvement in Rise Up Ocean County and political sabotage has been well known in many circles. In January, he was demoted as the president of the Jackson Planning Board. Jackson officials would not say why, but it is rumored to have been over his deceitful tactics and dishonesty when it came to his agenda and heavy-handed tactics to influence local government officials.
The insider, also a former Jackson School Board member, would not comment on the matter.
Rise Up Ocean County was condemned by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, the Ocean County Board of Commissioners, and others throughout its brief existence.
An investigation into the matter should immediately be conducted by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, The Department of Justice, and the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
You were all played.
Signed,
A Deeply Concerned Jackson Resident