MANCHESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ – Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced the arrest of a suspect involved in a house fire and anti-Semitic graffiti that occurred on late Tuesday, and into the early morning of Wednesday.
Ron Carr, a 34-year-old Manchester resident, is charged with 36 criminal counts, which include Bias Intimidation (First and Third Degree), Aggravated Arson (Second Degree), Arson (Third Degree), and Criminal Mischief (Fourth Degree). Carr allegedly used an accelerant to ignite a fire that gutted a house in the Pine Lake Park section of the township and spray-painted Nazi symbols on more than a dozen homes, residential fences, and other locations. The investigation reveals that Carr targeted Jewish residents.
At about 11:45 p.m., on Tuesday, Manchester Township Police responded to calls concerning vandalism in Pine Lake Park. They identified 14 vandalized homes. Early on Wednesday, at approximately 3:11 a.m., they received reports of a structure fire in the same neighborhood, along with reports of a suspicious person on foot nearby. This individual matched the description of the suspect in the vandalism incidents, as captured on security-camera footage. Manchester Township Police apprehended Carr near Commonwealth Boulevard and Larchmont Street.
The fire destroyed one house, caused heat damage to three additional homes, and spread to a wooded area behind the house. There were no injuries reported. Carr is currently in a medical facility and will be transferred to the Ocean County Jail in Toms River pending his detention hearing.