Lacey Township Man Charged in Fuel Spill Probe

A diesel fuel spill that leached into wetlands in Lacey Township leads investigators to a township 24-year-old.

Nico Morgan faces a second-degree charge of purposely and knowingly causing a release and abandonment of toxic pollutants, according to information from the office of Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato.

The oozing fuel was discovered about 10:41 PM Sunday by Lacey Township police officers responding to a call of a vehicle in a section of woods near Lacey Road.

Officers found no car, but did discover five 55-gallon plastic drums on the roadside and in the adjoining woods. The contents of two had leaked on the road and in the wetlands, authorities said.

Lacey Officers Rob Flynn II and Jeff Slota followed the fuel trail to a home on Capshaw Road, where they found a black Jeep Cherokee with passenger-side damage and a rear tire missing.

The jeep was hitched to a trailer containing yet another 55-gallon drum, this one filled with what is believed to be diesel fuel, authorities said.

The officers later determined that Morgan, of Saltspray Drive, was behind the wheel.

Morgan was released in lieu of $15,000 bail to await proceedings and would be responsible for any associated cleanup costs as determined by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, authorities said.