1BERKELEY TOWNSHIP, NJ – A 48-year-old man from Berkeley Township has been charged with aggravated arson after investigators say he intentionally set fire to a mulch bed outside a Pheasant Drive residence on Wednesday morning.

The incident was reported around 7:20 a.m. when police and firefighters responded to a small brush fire in front of the home.

Fire crews extinguished the smoldering mulch bed before it spread, officials said.

Investigators trace fire to open flame and ignitable liquid

According to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, an investigation by multiple agencies determined the fire originated in the mulch bed on the south side of the residence and was caused by an open flame applied to an ignitable liquid.

The joint probe included the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office

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