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On Monday, Feb. 20, at approximately 2:20 p.m., the Berkeley Township Police Department and the Beachwood Borough Fire Department responded to a wooded area inside Johnson’s Pit, located in Berkeley Township, for a report of a brush fire.
Emergency personnel discovered and extinguished a small brush fire.
An investigation by the Ocean County Fire Marshals Office and New Jersey State Forest Fire Service determined that there were three separate fires, including one inside an unoccupied tent, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer.
A thorough investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Unit, Berkeley Township Police Department Detective Bureau and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit determined that the fire had three separate points of origin and were intentionally set, Billhimer said. An open flame to available combustibles cannot be eliminated as to the cause, he said.
This remains an active and ongoing investigation, and anyone in possession of information concerning this fire is urged to contact Detective Christopher Bonner of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office at 732-929-2027, extension 2449 or Detective William Sommers of the Berkeley Township Police Department at 732-341-1132, extension 2111.
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