NJ fire chief busted after video shows bucket of gravel thrown on rare car

PISCATAWAY — A firehouse chief is in trouble after video shows a man dumping a bucket of gravel and mud onto a rare sports car, parked next door in Piscataway.

Arbor Hose Company No. 1 Chief Joshua Scolnick was charged with third-degree criminal mischief, CBS New York reported.

Mark Bahna is the owner of the 1997 Nissan Nismo 270R that was damaged by the rocky mixture.

Bahna collects and sells rare Japanese sports cars.

He says that this model Nismo — an abbreviation of Nissan Motorsports International — is among only 30 ever made. 

In the same CBS New York report, Bahna said the car would cost about $10,000 to repair, with cracks in the rear windshield and other dings.

He said that he believes there has been resentment from the fire house about sump pump discharge — an email to the fire house was not immediately returned on Friday.

The Watchung resident also owns the nearly one-acre property next to the firehouse, the former Arbor Rescue Squad site.

The car was parked between the buildings in surveillance video that Bahna posted to his social media accounts.

Bahna sought approval in 2022 to use the buildings for both a wrestling and strength training facility with a garage for personal vehicles, MyCentralJersey.com reported.

Since then, Yale Street Wrestling Club and Level Up Strength & Performance have both opened.

The auto collector also created local buzz in 2017, when he bid $200,000 for the liquor license at the now long defunct country bar and restaurant, Colorado Cafe.

The transaction did not go through, as a reserve bid was not met, TapInto reported.

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