A New York man has been charged with aggravated arson and possession of destructive devices in connection with fires set at a vehicle and near a residence in South Toms River, authorities said.
Tashaun Normand, 42, of the Bronx, was charged March 27 with two counts of aggravated arson and two counts of possession of destructive devices related to an incident that occurred March 23 on Belmont Drive, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
Officers from the South Toms River Police Department and the Manitou Park Fire Company responded at approximately 3:15 p.m. March 23 to a report of a vehicle fire at a home.
First responders found a fire inside a 2010 GMC Terrain and a separate fire in a grassy area adjacent to the home.
Both fires were extinguished.
At the scene, officers observed a broken glass bottle and a second glass bottle containing an unknown liquid with a torn rag placed inside, consistent with a Molotov cocktail, authorities said.
A joint investigation determined that the fire originated at the front windshield of the vehicle and was intentionally set.
Investigators determined that Normand allegedly made Molotov cocktails and threw them at the vehicle and in the direction of the home.
Normand was taken into custody March 30 in Monroe County, Tennessee, by the Tennessee Highway Patrol without incident. He is being held at the Monroe County Jail pending extradition to New Jersey.