Synagogue Fire 'Not Suspicious' Until Video Showed Arson In Ocean County: Affidavit

LAKEWOOD, NJ — A fire that was first ruled not suspicious turned into charges of aggravated arson for a Lakewood man after surveillance video caught him setting the blaze, according to court documents.

Yaakov Y. Stern, 48 , was arrested Sept. 3 in connection with the fire that happened on Aug. 25 at a building on Delaware Trail, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said.

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The fire at Mordy's Shteibel, a stand-alone synagogue, was reported about 6 a.m. on Aug. 25, according to a post by Tri-County Scanner News.

The fire was extinguished and the Ocean County Fire Marshal deemed the building uninhabitable and also deemed it not suspicious, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in Stern's arrest.

That changed Sept. 3 when Lakewood detectives received surveillance video from inside the synagogue, the affidavit said.

The video shows a man walking into the main learning room i the synagogue and approaching the podium, which was covered by a blue cloth with white frayed edges, the affidavit said.

The man can be seen bending over and setting the corner of the cloth on fire, the affidavit said. He then walked to the center of the room and went to another religious podium covered with the same blue material, and then bent over and began lighting that cloth on fire as well before leaving the room and leaving the view of the surveillance camera, the affidavit said.

The man was described as white and was wearing a white button-down short-sleeved shirt, black pants, glasses and a yamika, along with six cross-body bags. He also had a large key ring attached to the front of his pants hanging down the right side of his pants leg, according to the affidavit.

When the video was given to Lakewood detectives, Stern was identified as a person of interest, the affidavit said.

Detectives learned Stern was at another synagogue in Lakewood and went to see him.

When police arrived at the other synagogue, they found Stern on the second floor. In addition to the white shirt, Kachi pants and yamika, Stern had a large key ring attached to the front of his pants hanging down the right side of his pants leg, the affidavit said.

"Next to Mr. Stern on the window sill were six (6) cross body bags," the affidavit said.

Stern's identity was confirmed by another man at the synagogue, the affidavit said.

The affidavit does not give any indication of a possible motive.

Stern is the same man who was charged in 2019 with reckless driving after he drove a school bus onto a sidewalk to avoid traffic in Lakewood. He later pleaded guilty to reckless driving in municipal court, court records show.

Stern also just completed 18 months of probation following a guilty plea in an assault case. State court records show he was arrested in September 2023 in Lakewood and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon along with weapons charges. He pleaded guilty in December 2024 and was sentenced Jan. 31, 2025 to the 18 months of probation. He also was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation and was ordered to have no contact with the victim and to stay away from the Walnut Avenue address involved in that assault.