Comedian and actor Carlo Bellario was convinced the gun charges against him would eventually be seen as a mistake. But so far, it hasn't.
He thought it would eventually blow over, and that police would realize that it was all a big misunderstanding. After all, he was just an actor and comedian he thought to himself.
Actor and comedian Carlo Bellario, 48, of Toms River, standing with the late comedian Joan Rivers. But when 48-year-old Carlo Bellario, of Toms River, was arrested in November for having a fake gun while filming a small, independent film in a residential neighborhood in Woodbridge, things quickly escalated.
When he was held in the Middlesex County Jail for four days and charged with second-degree weapons possession, the severity of the situation hit him -- and now he's afraid of what may happen next.
He was shooting a film called Vendetta Games directed by Staten Island native Andre Joseph, who runs a production company named Epyx Productions.
Joseph did not respond to a request for comment, but Bellario said he felt like the production staff who had cast him for the role -- which did not pay but offered a movie credit -- left him holding the bag when the situation transpired.
Bellario, three months after the incident, is trying to draw more support to his situation after the daunting realization that it was not going to resolve itself on its own as he had hoped. He has also incurred roughly $10,000 in legal fees so far, and not to mention, he is afraid of what the future holds.
A GoFundMe page was created to help Bellario raise money for his legal expenses.
He does not blame the neighbors for becoming alarmed or the police for the way in which they initially responded. Nevertheless, at this point, he says, he doesn't know why the matter is continuing to go as far as it has.
Bellario was arraigned after being held in jail. Whether a Superior Court will indict him remains to be seen.
Bellario was playing the role of a bodyguard for a drug dealer. The film, he said, involved a simulated car chase, which was conducted in the area of Bucknell Avenue.
"And my job was to hang out of the window and pretend to shoot (the gun)" he explained.
However, he never fired the CO2 pellet gun. Though air guns can be found at stores like Wal-Mart or Dick's Sporting Goods, under New Jersey law they are considered real firearms; being caught with an air gun without the proper permits could carry a three- to-five-year prison sentence.
"The scene took about five minutes, and they are setting up to do the next shot," Bellario said, noting that everyone was standing near a sidewalk. "Bear in mind, I'm in character, and the prop gun is in my waistband."
The police arrive and approach in what Bellario describes as a "charged up" way.
Mind you, he said, the terrorist attacks in Paris had just occurred three days earlier, which Bellario believes may have added an extra sense of alarm and distress in both the community and police officials.
"I can't blame the cops," he said. "They get called that there is a guy with a gun; they are doing their jobs (and) they don't know what they are driving into."
The police start questioning everyone on the movie set, which was between eight and 10 people, including cast and crew.
According to Bellario, because Joseph had not acquired a permit, the police had no idea what was going on.
But Bellario was hurt by Joseph, feeling as if he and his production company left him in the lurch.
Bellario's girlfriend, Jusella Sboto, said the cops told her that Joseph was going to come and bail Bellario out.
"We were waiting for him, and I give him a call, and he said, 'I'm not coming with the bail; it's too much,'" Sboto said.
Sboto then had to scramble over the next four days to obtain $10,000 from a bail bonds company.
"I just had come off a really great career-high performance of my comedy (stand-up)," Bellario recalled. "And then that Monday, I am sitting in a jail cell facing five years. Talk about irony."
Bellario met a comedy idol of his, Bill Engvail, of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, who he said praised his work and encouraged him to keep performing.
However, if everything turns out OK, he said the situation would provide some fresh material for his stand-up routine. But he said he'll get to that later on -- but he hopes to be writing those jokes at his home in Toms River, and not in prison.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.