Man Purposely Burned Child With A Lighter: Toms River Police

TOMS RIVER, NJ — A Middlesex County man is in jail on charges he used a cigarette lighter to inflict several burns on a 6-year-old child, Toms River police said Tuesday.

Kareem Hayes, 36, of New Brunswick, is being held at the Ocean County Jail, Toms River, in lieu of $250,000 bail, said Ralph Stocco, spokesman for the Toms River Police Department.

Hayes has been charged with aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a child, Stocco said.

Hayes was arrested Nov. 29 after an investigation by Toms River Police Detective Thomas Grosse and Ocean County Prosecutors Special Victims Unit Detective Lindsey Most, he said.

The 6-year-old child, who was under the care of Hayes, suffered second- and third-degree burns to the face, neck and ear, Stocco said. Grosse and Most determined that Hayes had "purposefully used a lighter to burn" the child, he said.

The incident occurred at a residence in Toms River, Stocco said.

Ocean County Senior Assistant Prosecutor Christine Lento authorized the charges, he said.

Kareem Hayes, via Ocean County Corrections Department; handcuffs image via Shutterstock