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The 14-year-old was charged with second-degree aggravated arson and causing or risking widespread injury or damage, the Evesham Township Police Department said in a news release on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
Officers responded to the forest fire off Sycamore Drive near the border with Berlin Township at around 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 30. It took firefighters several days to extinguish the roughly 52-acre wildfire.
The blaze threatened 15 homes but no buildings were destroyed and no one needed to be evacuated. No roads were closed by the fire.
Investigators found evidence that the fire was arson and determined the boy intentionally started the fire. The teen was arrested on Thursday, Nov. 7.
On the day of the wildfire, many parts of New Jersey were under mandatory fire restrictions due to drought conditions. Since then, the extremely dry conditions have fueled more fires across the state like in West Milford and Gloucester County.
The boy was held in the Middlesex Juvenile Detention Center to await a first court appearance.
Anyone with information about the fire should call Evesham police at 856-983-1116 or 856-983-4699.
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