OCEAN COUNTY – Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Shawn M. LaTourette announced that on November 8, 2024, Richard Shashaty, 37, of Brick Township, was charged with Arson and Violation of the Regulatory Provisions Relating to Firearms, in connection with a wildfire that began in Jackson Township on November 6, 2024.
On November 6, 2024, at approximately 12:15 p.m., the Jackson Township Police and Fire Departments along, with the Department of Environmental Protection’s New Jersey Forest Fire Service, were dispatched to the area of the Central Jersey Rifle Range on Stump Tavern Road for a report of a wildfire. The fire has burned approximately 350 acres. A thorough and extensive investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, New Jersey Forest Fire Service, Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, Jackson Township Police Department Detective Bureau, New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office, New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection-New Jersey Fish and Wildlife, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, determined that the origin of the fire was behind a berm in the Southwest corner of the Rifle Club, and the fire was caused by magnesium shards of a Dragons Breath 12 gauge shotgun round igniting available combustibles on the berm of the shooting range. The firing of this type of incendiary or tracer ammunition is prohibited in the State of New Jersey
Photo courtesy New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
Further investigation revealed that Shashaty was responsible for firing the ammunition and igniting the fire. On November 9, 2024, Shashaty surrendered himself to Jackson Township Police Headquarters in the presence of his attorney. He was transported to the Ocean County Jail, where he is presently lodged pending a detention hearing.
Prosecutor Billhimer and Commissioner LaTourette acknowledge the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crime Unit-Arson Squad, New Jersey Forest Fire Service, Ocean County Fire Marshal’s Office, Jackson Township Police Department Detective Bureau, New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office, New Jersey State Police Office of Emergency Management, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection-New Jersey Fish and Wildlife, and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, for their combined and cooperative efforts in connection with this investigation.
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