Crime & Safety
Bridgewater Man Arrested For Setting Fire To 3 Cars: Prosecutor
Mason A. Pagnotta, 21, of Brown Road was charged after 3 vehicles parked in the driveway of a Garrettson Road home were set on fire in 2016.
BRIDGEWATER, NJ — A Bridgewater man was arrested for setting fire to three cars parked in a township driveway in 2016.
Mason A. Pagnotta, 21, of Brown Road was arrested on Thursday for the 2016 crime and charged with two counts of second-degree aggravated arson, Prosecutor Michael H. Robertson announced.
The three vehicles parked in the driveway of a Garrettson Road home were set on fire on Jan. 18, 2016 at around 3:45 a.m., Robertson reported.
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A vehicle, which had a distinctive rear spoiler, was seen on a surveillance video parked outside the home moments before a large fire erupts in the driveway, according to the report.
A person is then seen running to the parked vehicle and driving away, Robertson sad.
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An investigation found that Pagnotta had given a former friend and resident of the home an expensive gift that he wanted back after their friendship ended but the gift was never returned.
At the time of the arson Pagnotta owned a 2004 Mitsubishi vehicle with a large rear spoiler fitting the description of the vehicle captured in the video footage, Robertson said.
On May 10, 2018, Pagnotta was arrested and is currently being held in the Somerset County Jail awaiting a detention hearing.
Anyone with additional information regarding this incident should contact the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit at 908-231-7100, the Bridgewater Township Police Department at 908-722-4111.
Information may also be sent by text message via the STOPit app by downloading STOPit to your smart phone at Google Play or the Apple Store and enter the access code SOMERSETNJ. Tipsters may also contact the Somerset County Crime Stoppers’ Tip Line at 1-888- 577-TIPS (8477) or online at www.888577tips.org or www.scpo.net and click on either “Crime Stoppers” or “TIPS HOTLINE”.
All anonymous Crime Stopper tips will be kept confidential.
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