By Elaine Van Develde

When it was reported to police that shots were fired in a Rumson home on Sunday evening, where they were called to an unrelated incident the night before, it turned out that friends of the homeowner were engaged in a makeshift target practice in the basement.

“Yes, they were shooting a .38 handgun into the wall of the basement — using a plywood target — of an Auldwood Lane home,” Rumson Police Detective Christopher Isherwood said on Monday morning. “The nanny heard the (numerous) shots and called police around 6:30 p.m. Police from the surrounding area — Fair Haven, Little Silver and Red Bank — and the (Monmouth County) Sheriff’s Office responded. Rumson police had responded to an incident at the same home the night before.”

Upon further investigation, police determined that there was no connection between the two incidents and that there was no violent use (or intent) of the gun. “No injuries,” Isherwood said.

They also discovered that one of the men involved in the target practice had a warrant out for his arrest.

Robert Toros, 36, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged with contempt of court and transported to the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in lieu of $2500 bail, set by Judge Richard B. Thompson, Isherwood said.

Further charges may be lodged against those involved in the practice, Isherwood added, because, among other things, such a use in a residential area is prohibited by borough ordinance.