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The 58-year-old man, whose identity was withheld pending notification of family, was arrested around 1:45 a.m. Sept. 19 near a restaurant in the 400 block of Morris Avenue. The day before, at around 5:40 a.m., a small fire broke out in a Dumpster at that location, which was quickly put out. The man was initially taken into custody on two open warrants and was later charged with third-degree arson in connection with the fire, the prosecutor's office said.
Shortly before 11 a.m. on Sept. 19, when he was in police custody, the man said ghe felt unwell and was taken to Trinitas Regional Medical Center. He was found to be medically stable and was returned to police custody around 2 p.m.
The following morning, at around 4 a.m., police conducting a welfare check in his holding cell found him unresponsive, and they began rendering emergency medical aid. EMTs arrived to assist and pronounced him dead a short time later, the prosecutor's office said.
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