Patrick A. Fearon
Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella announced the arrest of 26-year-old PATRICK A. FEARON, currently homeless and formerly of Hackensack, NJ on charges of aggravated arson, arson, burglary, criminal mischief, and failure to control or report a dangerous fire. The arrest was the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Matthew Finck and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office under the direction of Sheriff Anthony Cureton.
On Thursday, September 19, 2024, at approximately 12:30 a.m., the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, Hackensack Police Department, and Hackensack Fire Department responded to a vehicle fire in the parking lot of Bergen County Academies located at 200 Hackensack Avenue, Hackensack, NJ. Upon arrival, first responders located two vehicles fully engulfed in fire. Following fire suppression efforts, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Squad was notified and responded to the scene. Detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Task Force, and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office initiated a joint investigation.
The Arson Squad determined that a fire was intentionally set to a locked, unoccupied Ford F350 pickup truck owned by the County of Bergen. That fire spread to another pickup truck also owned by the County of Bergen, which was parked adjacent to the first vehicle. The joint investigation revealed that PATRICK A. FEARON approached the vehicle in the parking lot, shattered the driver’s-side window of the pickup truck, set the fire using an accelerant, and then fled the area without notifying the authorities of the fire.
As a result of the investigation, on Friday, September 19, 2024, PATRICK A. FEARON was charged with one count of second-degree aggravated arson in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:17-1A(2); two counts of third-degree arson in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:17-1B(2); one count of third-degree criminal mischief in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:17-3A(1); one count of third-degree burglary in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:18-2A(1); and one count of fourth-degree failure to control or report a dangerous fire in violation of N.J.S.A. 17-1C(2).
Subsequently, and in the days ahead, detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, along with crucial assistance from patrol officers with the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, Teaneck Police Department, and Bogota Police Department endeavored to locate PATRICK A. FEARON whose whereabouts were unknown. Accordingly, on Friday afternoon, September 27, 2024, FEARON was located and apprehended without incident in Teaneck, NJ. FEARON was remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending his first court appearance in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack, NJ.
Prosecutor Musella states that the charges are merely accusations, and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. He would like to thank the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office, the Teaneck Police Department, and the Bogota Police Department for their assistance in the investigation and apprehension of the defendant. In addition, Prosecutor Musella thanks the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office and Hackensack Fire Department for their participation in the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Arson Task Force.
