Crime & Safety
Cops: Naked Hospital Patient Sets Fire to Gardening Center
An employee told police the fire was started by a naked man inside the shop, later identified as a patient at Bergen Regional Medical Center who had been reported missing.
Paramus Police believe a small Monday morning fire at an Oradell Avenue gardening center near the Ridgewood border was caused by a naked Bergen Regional Medical Center patient who had been reported missing.
A small fire broke out at Eisele’s Nursey and Gardening Center around 7 a.m., causing minimal damage to the store, police said. The flames were extinguished by the time police arrived.
An employee of the gardening center told police upon their arrival that the naked man found in the shop started the fire, police said.
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Police apprehended a 44-year Lyndhurst man and returned him to Bergen Regional Medical Center for psychiatric evaluation, according to a police statement. He had been reported missing from the facility since about 3:30 a.m. police said.
Police would not release the man’s name due to privacy rules regarding his condition. The arson investigation is still ongoing, said Lt. John Scully of Paramus Police Department.
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