TOMS RIVER — A 21-year-old Tuckerton man has admitted to setting a house fire in Little Egg Harbor Township last year, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced.
Thomas Lester pleaded guilty September 29 to aggravated arson and criminal mischief before Superior Court Judge Dina M. Vicari. Prosecutors will recommend a three-year state prison sentence on the arson charge and a concurrent 12-month term for criminal mischief when Lester is sentenced November 17.
Authorities said the fire broke out shortly after 3 a.m. on January 8, 2024, at a home on National Union Boulevard. Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze, and investigators later determined it had been deliberately set with an open flame and ignitable liquid in the living room.
The investigation, led by the Prosecutor’s Office Arson Squad with assistance from multiple law enforcement and fire agencies, identified Lester and 20-year-old Ethan Salter of Little Egg Harbor as the suspects. Both men were arrested in March 2024.
Salter pleaded guilty to aggravated arson earlier this year and is also scheduled to be sentenced November 17. He remains in custody at the Ocean County Jail.
Billhimer credited Assistant Prosecutors Christopher Heisler and Julie Peterson, along with the various local, county and state agencies involved, for their work in bringing the case to resolution.
