Ocean County arson charges after 3 fires set inside home

🔥Multiple fires erupt inside a Berkeley Township home

🔥Resident George DiPierro, 70, is arrested at the scene, officials said

🔥The prosecutor did not disclose if anyone else was inside the home

BERKELEY TOWNSHIP — A man has been charged with setting several fires inside the Ocean County home where he lives, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said around 12:15 p.m. Saturday, firefighters arrived at a house on Harbor Court in Berkeley Township. They saw smoke on the first floor along with evidence of a fire that appeared to have been put out.

Firefighters also extinguished two more fires they found in bedrooms on the second floor.

Investigators determined that the fires were started by someone "utilizing an open flame to available combustibles," according to Billhimer.

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George DiPierro, 70, was arrested at the scene and charged with three counts of aggravated arson. He is being held at the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing.

Billhimer did not disclose if anyone else was in the home at the time of the fire or why the fires were set.

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