PLUMSTED — Attempted murder and aggravated arson charges against a Saddle Brook man have been dismissed after investigators determined that a woman gave false information about how she suffered burns and who was responsible, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced.
Justin Martin, 36, had been charged following an Oct. 15 incident in a wooded area near Hawkin and Success roads. Authorities dismissed both charges Oct. 23 in the interests of justice.
Police and emergency medical personnel responded to a report of a woman with burns at approximately 1:36 p.m. Oct. 15. The woman, identified in the announcement only by the surname Villano, was taken to Temple University Burn Center in Philadelphia. She was treated and released several days later.
During the initial investigation, Villano told authorities she had been in the woods with Martin and another person when her boyfriend tried to burn and kill her, according to the prosecutor’s office.
Detectives arrested Martin in Asbury Park shortly after midnight Oct. 16. He was taken to the Ocean County Jail and released Oct. 19.
Investigators subsequently determined that Villano’s account of the cause of her injuries and the person responsible was false, prosecutors said. On Oct. 23, she was charged with two counts of falsely incriminating another and taken into custody at Eatontown police headquarters.
Villano was transferred to the Ocean County Jail pending a detention hearing. The announcement did not explain how she sustained her burns. The charges against her are accusations, and she is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
