Crime & Safety
Man Sent To Prison For Setting Brick Home On Fire
The Toms River man also was sentenced for attacking a man with an ax in an unrelated incident, the prosecutor's office said.
BRICK, NJ — A Toms River man has been sentenced to three years in prison for setting a Brick Township home on fire in 2024, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said Friday.
Charles F. Maulbeck, 52, was sentenced Friday for his guilty plea to one count of arson in the fire set at a home on Falkenburg Road on Sept. 14, 2024, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said. Maulbeck pleaded guilty in te case in June.
Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan also senteced Maulbeck to three years in prison for aggravated assault in an incident on April 9, 2024, Billhimer said.
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In that case, Maulbeck showed up at a home on Stuyvesant Street and confronted the homeowner, the prosecutor's office said. An altercation ensued and Maulbeck hit the homeowner with an ax then left the area, authorities said.
Maulbeck walked to Dollar General and called police, who found him with minor injuries to his face and arms, the prosecutor's office said. He was taken to Community Medical Center for treatment, but when he was released from the hospital he was arrested on the charge of aggravated assault and taken to the Ocean County Jail. He was later released from the jail as a consequence of bail reform.
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The victim sustained minor injuries and refused medical treatment, authorities said.
Ryan also sentence Maulbeck to 18 months in prison for criminal mischief in an incident in Lacey that happened the day after the arson, authorities said.
None of the incidents were related; the sentences will run concurrently, the prosecutor's office said.
On Sept. 13, 2024, Brick Township police on patrol saw smoke and lots of flames coming from a home on Falkenberg Road. Three firefighters were injured while extinguishing the fire, with two needing treatment at a hospital, authorities said.
Investigators traced the origin of the fire to the north side of the split basement of the home and determined it had been caused by someone setting fire to available combustible items, authorities said. Authorities were able to determine Maulbeck had set the fire and arrested him a few weeks later.
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