A swastika crudely carved into a lawn might land a Lakewood man in prison for 15 months.

Swastika carved into Lakewood lawn (Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)
Swastika carved into Lakewood lawn (Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)
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That's the sentence that Ocean County prosecutors seek for Scott F. Cooney, 36, of Leisure Village, who pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree charge of bias intimidation related to an August 2014 incident involving two victims in the township.

According to information from the office of County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato, Cooney would have been required to serve 18 months if convicted at trial. He will be sentenced August 21, a year and a week since his arrest. Cooney is ordered to avoid any contact with the victims, authorities said.

Scott F. Cooney (Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)
Scott F. Cooney (Ocean County Prosecutor's Office)
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Investigators said that the incident capped a pattern of abuse that stretched over several months prior to Cooney's arrest on August 13, 2015.

The victims alleged repeated verbal harassment and threats, telling investigators that in the early afternoon of August 10 they watched from inside their home as Cooney defaced their lawn with something resembling a lead pipe.

The victims told authorities that they emerged after he left the area, discovered the swastika, photographed it, and contacted Lakewood police.

Cooney posted the $25,000 bail set in Ocean County Superior Court, but it was revoked when he violated the no-contact order, authorities said. He was jailed on June 5 of this year.

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