JACKSON – A 30-year-old man has been arrested and charged with terroristic threats after threatening to light an apartment complex on fire, police said.
Around 1:49 a.m. this morning, Officers John Araneda, Matthew Jamison, Javier DeLaTorre, Robert Reiff and Randall Trasky from the Jackson Township Police Department responded to Chatham Court located in the Gardens at Jackson 21 regarding a disturbance.
According to residents in the building, their neighbor had a baseball bat and was threatening to enter their home. The suspect had also grabbed the victims’ bean bag chair from their porch, set it on fire in the common area of the complex, and then threatened to set the building on fire.
Officer Araneda, who arrived first at the scene, was able to extinguish the fire set to the chair and the grass, police said.
After talking to the victims, police discovered that the suspected attempted to enter their home through a sliding door then stood outside yelling with a baseball bat in hand, threatening to burn the building down.
Officers attempted to make contact with the suspect but he refused to cooperate and open the door for them.
Due to the suspect’s behavior and the threats made, officers evacuated the neighboring units. Police then forced entry to the suspect’s apartment and located him.
Although police were able to take the suspect into custody, the man was uncooperative with officers and later had to be transferred to a local hospital for treatment.
The man, identified as 30-yer-old Jonathan Burgos of Jackson, was charged with attempted burglary, criminal mischief by fire, unlawful possession of a weapon, obstruction and terroristic threats.
The public are reminded that any persons arrested or charged with any offenses or crimes are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
