Pleasantville Man Gets Five Years for Pointing Gun at Dollar General Worker

Javont Bell-Lowe, 19, of Pleasantville, was sentenced to five years in New Jersey State Prison after pleading guilty to pointing a loaded handgun at a Dollar General employee last summer, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office confirmed.

The incident unfolded in escalating stages on August 13, 2025. At approximately 11:00 a.m., Pleasantville police responded to a call about a handgun being pointed at a clerk at the Dollar General on South New Road. What officers learned was that Bell-Lowe had already been to the store twice that morning following an initial verbal altercation. The first time, he returned carrying a handbag and threatened that it contained a gun. He came back a second time with the gun partially removed from the bag before leaving again. Police were called after that second return.

When officers arrived on South New Road, Bell-Lowe was gone. They later spotted him walking northbound on the same road, carrying a fanny pack believed to contain the firearm. He saw the officers, dropped the bag, and ran. Police recovered the discarded fanny pack and found a Glock 36 in .45 caliber loaded with one hollow-point round and five ballpoint rounds. Bell-Lowe was apprehended a short distance away at the intersection of South New Road and Elm Avenue.

Judge Jorge Combs ordered him held at a detention hearing, and Bell-Lowe has remained jailed since. He pleaded guilty to second-degree possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose. At sentencing on March 12, he received five years in state prison with a one-year parole ineligibility period. He has credit for approximately seven months served and remains at the Atlantic County Justice Facility pending transfer to state prison.

BreakingAC reported that Bell-Lowe had no prior contact with law enforcement before this incident. The case was investigated by the Pleasantville City Police Department, and Assistant Prosecutor Frank Vizzi represented the State.

The episode is a stark example of the threat exposure Dollar General workers face, particularly in stores that routinely operate with a single associate on the floor. In this case, an employee was confronted not once but on a second and third visit before police were even called, with each return escalating from a verbal threat to a partially drawn firearm. No statement from the store employee or Dollar General corporate appeared in the materials released by the prosecutor's office.