FREEHOLD, N.J. — A Neptune Township police officer has been charged with illegally accessing law enforcement databases to obtain personal information about a woman, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago announced Thursday.
Joshua A. James, 29, faces a third-degree charge of computer-related criminal activity after an investigation by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Professional Responsibility Unit revealed the alleged misuse.
Authorities said James was working a security detail at a local elementary school earlier this month when he saw a woman picking up her child. He reportedly used her license plate to access restricted databases, retrieving her home address.
James then went to the woman’s residence, where he allegedly asked if she was single and requested her phone number, officials said.
The Neptune Township Police Department has suspended James from duty, pending the resolution of the charges.