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Willie L. Mason
Willie L. Mason, 40, bought the can of gas at a local service station around 1 a.m. Tuesday and poured gasoline around the foundation and on the woman’s car, said Bergen County Prosecutor John L. Molinelli.
“Earlier in the night, Mason left the victim numerous voicemail messages in which he threatened to kill her,” the prosecutor said, adding that the woman had obtained restraining orders against him several times.
Seeing what he was up to, the intended victim — who is the mother of Mason’s 3-year-old son — called police. They found Mason, as well as a book of matches, nearby, Molinelli said.
The prosecutor noted that there were six other “unsuspecting relatives” inside the two-family house at the time, including a 24-year-old woman and her 7-year-old daughter, and three children — Mason’s son and two other youngsters, ages 13 and 10.
Mason is being held on $500,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail, charged with attempted murder, making terroristic threats and various counts of arson. He is due in Superior Court in Hackensack at 1:30 Thursday afternoon.
Molinelli praised Lodi police “for their fine work and quick response, which averted a potential serious fire and loss of life.”
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