A Union City man has been charged with the arson of a local Jewish synagogue and yeshiva and remains detained after a hearing earlier today, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
Oswaldo Domingo Xil-Argueta, 29, of Union City, was charged with aggravated arson, criminal mischief, and burglary, Suarez said in a statement.
Since the arson was at a place of public worship, the aggravated arson charge has been elevated to a first-degree offense. At this point, there is no evidence that this was a bias incident.
Xil-Argueta is accused of setting a fire set at a Jewish synagogue and the Mesivta Sanz Yeshiva, also known as the Jewish Community Center on North Hudson, on 34th Street in Union City.
Today, during a hearing before Hudson County Superior Court Judge Paul DePascale, the state’s motion for pretrial detention was approved after the state argued Xil-Argueta posed a danger to the community.
Xil-Argueta was arrested at 325 34th St. in Union City just after 4 a.m. on July 5th by the
Union City Police Department and the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Regional Arson Task Force.
On Saturday, July 3, 2021 just before 3 a.m., members of the Union City Police Department and the North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue responded to 318 34th St. on reports of a working fire.
There were no occupants in the building at the time and no injuries, however, the fire escalated to two-alarms.
Suarez credited the Union City Police Department and the Hudson County Regional
Arson Task Force for the investigation and arrest.
