LITTLE EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP, NJ — Two men from Ocean County have been sentenced to state prison following guilty pleas related to a structure fire and a false bomb threat in Little Egg Harbor Township.
Ethan Salter, 20, of Little Egg Harbor Township, was sentenced to three years in New Jersey State Prison on November 21 after pleading guilty to aggravated arson in connection with a fire set on January 8.
He was also sentenced to three years for creating a false public alarm related to a bomb threat at a Walmart store on December 2, 2023.
The sentences will run concurrently.
Salter’s guilty pleas were entered before Judge Dina M. Vicari on April 28.
Also sentenced on November 21 was Thomas Lester, 21, of Tuckerton, who received a three-year sentence for aggravated arson and 12 months for criminal mischief, both stemming from the January 8 incident.
His sentences will also run concurrently.
Lester entered his guilty pleas before Judge Vicari on September 29.
On December 2, 2023, Little Egg Harbor Township police responded to a report of a bomb threat at the Walmart store around 5:45 p.m.
The store was evacuated and searched by the New Jersey State Police Bomb Squad and Ocean County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit.
The threat was determined not credible.
Investigators found that the threat had been broadcast over in-store radios by Salter, a former employee, using a stolen radio.
Salter was arrested at his residence on December 5 without incident.
On January 8, at approximately 3:19 a.m., police and fire departments responded to a structure fire on National Union Boulevard.
The fire, determined to have been deliberately set, was extinguished by firefighters.
A joint investigation by multiple agencies led to the identification of Salter and Lester as the individuals responsible for setting the fire.
Both were arrested at their residences on March 7.
Salter is currently in the Ocean County Jail for violating the terms of his release.
Lester has also been released under conditions set by New Jersey Bail Reform.
The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office credited several law enforcement agencies with assisting in the investigation and prosecution of the case.
