Ex-Con Convicted Of Pouring Motor Oil In Estranged Wife's Newark Bedroom In Attempted Arson

A Newark man with seven prior convictions is facing yet another, this time for pouring motor oil on his estranged wife's bedroom wall and lighting it on fire, authorities announced.

Delvin Wilson, a 56-year-old Newark man, was convicted of dousing his estranged wife's apartment in motor oil and trying to set the building on fire, authorities say.
Photo Credit: *Essex County Jail*

Mac Bullock

12/16/2022 3:37 p.m.

Delvin Wilson, 56, was found guilty of attempted arson and terroristic threats, said acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens II in a statement Friday, Dec. 16.

Police say Wilson was captured on video in October 2021 dousing the side of a 15th Avenue apartment building in motor oil before trying to set the wall on fire.

Investigators later learned that his estranged wife lived in the apartment on the other side of the wall. Just before the attack, Wilson left a voicemail to his wife promising to burn her building down, officials added.

For his eighth criminal conviction in New Jersey, the 56-year-old faces more than 10 years in prison, authorities said.

“If this defendant successfully started a fire, he would have harmed his wife and everyone in the building,” said Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Dellera. "I hope the verdict brings peace and a sense of security to the victim and her family."

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